


how does he know?

by fruti2flutie



Category: Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fairy Tale Elements, Fluff, Humor, Light Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-29
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2019-01-25 23:29:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12543700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fruti2flutie/pseuds/fruti2flutie
Summary: Once upon a time, Kang Daniel gets his heart broken, meets a prince, and discovers that sometimes— sometimes, life can be a fairytale.





	how does he know?

**Author's Note:**

> -in another installment of “Should’ve Gone into [The Trashcan](http://archiveofourown.org/works/10999437/chapters/24501759) But I Got Wildly Carried Away” aka i had one (1) unoriginal thought and then spiraled out of control  
> -inspired by disney classic enchanted  
> -anyone who talks & is significant gets tagged as a character  
> -rated T for Teen bc jaehwan has a potty mouth  
> -self-edited so please forgive the mistakes!  
> -18k too long  
> -enjoy.

“You mean to tell me,” Jaehwan starts slowly, staring at the incredibly gorgeous man in his and Daniel’s apartment, on the couch, with a snow white dove perched atop his head that he casually feeds toasted oat cereal, “you found this guy in the _sewers_.”

“Under a manhole. Not technically _in_ the sewers,” Daniel corrects. “And his name is Seongwoo.”

“ _Prince_ Seongwoo,” said man adds pointedly, having overheard. He’s wearing an ostentatious outfit: puffed sleeves on his shoulders, velvet fabric, ultra tight pants, and pointed-toe boots. Jaehwan shoos the dove away, and the bird squawks as it flies out the window.

Seongwoo huffs, “I would think a lowly peasant such as yourself would respect royalty.”

“Hey, you don’t know me, Ninja Turtle,” Jaehwan sneers. “You haven’t seen my bank account. Don’t even start.”

Clearly, Seongwoo isn’t ruffled by the hostility. He’s more intrigued by and fixated on his bowl of Lucky Charms, which Daniel had poured for him before Jaehwan returned. Seongwoo scoops out the rainbow marshmallows, very audibly going “ _oooh_.” Daniel wonders if it was a good idea to offer him breakfast.

Jaehwan pulls his best friend aside and into the kitchen, where Seongwoo can’t hear them. “Kang Daniel, what’re you doing? Like, what the fuck? Is this what you do post-breakup? You should be over it by now, man. I knew you were hurting, but this is a new low.”

Daniel frowns. “What are you implying?”

“Okay, no offense, but this clearly looks like you hired an expensive boy toy to—”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” Daniel interrupts hastily, already feeling a degree warmer at the insinuation. He scratches his neck, muttering, “It’s... I don’t know. It’s complicated? A long story. Don’t think it too hard.”

Jaehwan huffs, “I will think it _very_ hard, excuse you. Don’t tell me what to do.” He points to the living room. “There’s a living, breathing person over there. What are you trying to pull?”

Daniel’s shoulders droop as he juts out his lower lip. “He needed help, Jaehwan. What was I supposed to do? Leave him alone to die?” That’s definitely an exaggeration, but Daniel is trying to make his case.

“You’re _liable_ for him. Like, legally responsible. Any shit he does is going to be _your_ fault. Him being a rude douchebag to me is on you — does that make you feel good? Don’t answer that, fucker.” Jaehwan opens the fridge and takes out a tangerine. “This is Peter and Rooney all over again.”

“Don’t bring them into this. Animals and humans are completely different!” Daniel’s beloved cats, which are residing at his parents’ house because of Jaehwan’s alleged allergy, had been a product of Daniel’s recklessness; he’d stolen them from an unlawful breeder and nearly gotten arrested. There had been a lot of paperwork, some fines here and there, but at least the cats were safe. Again, this is _different_.

“What do you know about this guy, Daniel? _I_ know he’s a rude douchebag who shouldn’t be on my couch.” Jaehwan peels his tangerine and then crosses his arms. “Give me one good reason I shouldn’t kick this asshole out.”

Daniel purses his lips, rubbing his socked foot against the ground. “Well...” He gives Jaehwan an innocent smile. “He doesn’t have any place to go.”

“Nope, not a good enough reason. Try again.”

Whiningly, Daniel ruffles his hair in frustration. “It’s— Jaehwan, it’s complicated. Super complicated! If I explain how we met and the circumstances, you won’t believe me. I could barely even believe it myself!”

Jaehwan cocks an eyebrow. He pulls out a chair and pops a tangerine slice in his mouth. “Try me.”

Daniel peers into the living room, where Seongwoo has gathered a small circle of various rodents at the table, feeding them cereal pieces. He shudders, trying not to think about what diseases a rat can transmit to him, and looks back at the expectant Jaehwan.

“First off,” he starts, sitting down, “I was drunk.”

——

This is the prelude: Kang Daniel is a twenty-four-year-old male, college graduate with a degree in communications and an office job that makes due, living in an apartment with his best friend of the same age Kim Jaehwan, who is an up-and-coming music composer for various artists over the country. Daniel lives a simple life, with a close-knit group of friends and a collection of comic books under his bed. If he’s being honest, he prefers boredom over adventure — the great outdoors is significantly less appealing than the warmth of his blankets.

Three days before their two-year anniversary, Kang Daniel breaks up with his fair-skinned boyfriend Ha Sungwoon. Or, well, Ha Sungwoon breaks up with _him_ , but. Semantics.

The two had met by chance, Daniel visiting a high-end restaurant for Jaehwan’s birthday celebration and Sungwoon performing live music on stage, nothing but a microphone and piano accompanying him. Too entranced by the heavenly sound of Sungwoon’s voice, Daniel had barely eaten any of his food for the night. After every song, Daniel had clapped the loudest and Sungwoon, brighter than the sun, had always smiled in his direction. Daniel’s heart raced in his chest, fluttering like he’d finally found what he was looking for.

Jaehwan had urged him to ask the man out, and Daniel was more than happy to do so. Sungwoon had been ecstatic at Daniel’s affections and agreed. Insert a two-year long montage of going on dates, meeting one another’s friends and family, lounging on the couch. Sungwoon, two years older than his boyfriend, had always been astonished at Daniel’s immaturity, how the man enjoys the most juvenile things in life. A trip to the beach can cause the same level of excitement as a gummy bear vitamin for him.

The couple is opposite ends of a spectrum, but they make it work. To Daniel, it’s a perfect balance — yin and yang, day and night, fire and water. Sungwoon grounds him, because Daniel tends to float too high for reality. Yet, as the months go by, Sungwoon seems to think otherwise.

Sungwoon breaks up with him on a Thursday. There’s no nice way to go about it, but Sungwoon could’ve picked a nicer McDonald’s. This one perpetually has one clogged toilet and reeks of overpriced cigarettes.

With his Big Mac half-eaten, forgotten on the tray, Daniel tries to convince Sungwoon that he’s wrong. Taking his hand, he tells Sungwoon how much he loves him and how he can change. Anything, Daniel will do for him. He can stop staying up late, start being more serious around Sungwoon, move in with him, comb his hair when they go out, stop talking about the cats all the time—

Sungwoon just shakes his head as Daniel gets more and more despairing.

“I’m not your ground, Daniel,” he insists, slipping his fingers out of Daniel’s grasp. “We’ve both got our heads in the clouds. I want to be free, go out and see the world, and you—” He stands. “All you do is daydream about it.”

And thus concludes the prelude.

Now, this is how the story goes: a month passes and Kang Daniel chooses to mope about his lost love on the weekends. Jaehwan tries to get him to stop, telling him to get back on the proverbial horse and/or into someone’s pants. (Crude, but Jaehwan’s intentions are sincere.) Daniel kindly disregards his advice; he needs time to figure out who he is without Sungwoon. Everything reminds him of his ex-boyfriend, and the pain in his heart only numbs when his senses dull after a few beers.

On Saturday, Daniel goes to a street tent to drink. Usually, he mopes in the comfort of his own home, but the fridge is out of beer and Jaehwan is out of town until morning. Therefore, Daniel drinks in the open air of the night, having conversations with himself and hoping someone out there cares enough to listen. He misses Sungwoon, but there’s nothing bringing him back. He’s moved to Japan, last he heard, off doing bigger and better things.

Daniel calls for another beer.

After finishing his drunken sob session, Daniel manages to get halfway home before needing to stop. His head starts to spin, a tingling pain, so he takes a seat on the curb to rest. He grumbles to himself, saying how “he’ll never drink again,” and then retracting the statement to say “he’ll never drink _alone_ again.” As he’s massaging his temples, the ground begins to rumble ominously under his feet and a distinct _whump_ sound echoes somewhere in front of him.

If he was sober, Daniel would jump to his feet and make a beeline for home, not daring to turn back in fear of whatever could be chasing him. However, Daniel had drunk over seven cans of beer and is in no condition for anything more strenuous than a light jog. He slowly rises to his feet and, out of (inebriated) curiosity, walks into the street where he’d heard the noise.

(Curiosity killed the cat and, hey, Daniel likes cats! He would gladly sacrifice himself for a cat to be saved. Wait, don’t cats have nine lives? He hasn’t actually thought it all through. _Cat martyr_ wouldn’t sound that heroic on his gravestone...)

Thank God there aren’t any cars around. Daniel stands in the dead center of the street and scrutinizes the peculiar manhole. While he doesn’t know the purpose of manholes, whether they lead to secret tunnels or let out steam from underground, Daniel is positive that princes don’t belong in them.

This is how Daniel meets Seongwoo: the handsome man groans in exaggerated agony as he struggles to hoist himself out from the manhole, covered head-to-toe in dazzling glitter, nearly chipping his tooth when he finally crawls onto the pavement. Daniel lends him a hand, smiling with all his teeth, and the other man takes it with a relieved exhale.

Seongwoo’s first words to Daniel are: “Thank you, good sir. Your charity is much appreciated. I should reward you with rings of gold and silver had I any, but alas, I have none.”

Daniel’s first words to Seongwoo are, then: “The fuck.”

Needless to say, it takes a while for them to have a coherent conversation. Daniel’s running on a beer-brain and Seongwoo sounds like he’s waltzed straight out of the Renaissance. Eventually, Seongwoo gets the hang of Daniel’s limited vocabulary and adjusts, toning down the theatrics. Daniel listens to Seongwoo’s origin story and tries to focus on the content, even though he’s fascinated by how pretty Seongwoo’s lips are.

Ong Seongwoo is a twenty-five-year-old male, sharp jawline and hair the color of the night, first prince of the Ong Kingdom, heir to the throne. The Ong Kingdom spans far and wide, allies with the Hwang Empire and Bae Dynasty, which are neighboring lands. Seongwoo’s world is full of dreams and magic, the stuff in storybooks Daniel would hear as a child — talking animals, fairies, trolls. Seongwoo has been preparing to take on the crown, the ceremony a few months away. Unfortunately, a witch has come out of the blue to somehow send him through an enchanted well and into Daniel’s world. Seongwoo is inconveniently unaware of how to return to his world and decides to reside here in the meantime.

“Also, you many refer to me as Prince Seongwoo. Thank you kindly.”

For starters, Daniel doesn’t take him seriously, because a prince? In Seoul? In this _millennia_? That’s ridiculous. Preposterous. Ludicrous.

And yet, the image of a prince fits. Seongwoo, draped in noble clothing, unfamiliar with directions, albeit movements trained and calculated. He wears a crowd-pleasing smile, speaks with profound clarity, and expects Daniel to stop talking when he talks, walk half a step behind his steps. That could just be his personality, a product of a spoiled childhood or overindulgent upbringing; Daniel has met loads of people with silver spoons in their mouths, traveling upon gold-paved roads.

However, Daniel has to give Seongwoo some credit. The man shows his confusion over the processes any normal person would know of, such as street lights, revolving doors, honking cars, running water. Seongwoo regards everything with a childlike amazement, a reaction never seen before by Daniel in this day and age. When Daniel pulls out his iPhone to check missed texts from Jaehwan, Seongwoo inhales sharply and murmurs, “What sorcery is this?” Realizing the genuineness of the question, Daniel explains and Seongwoo lights up, delighted.

Daniel’s choice is chosen. The feeling in his gut tells him to trust Seongwoo’s story, and he finds no fault in following the instinct. Daniel has always had a soft spot for fantasies, too.

So, Prince Seongwoo sleeps on Daniel’s couch. Daniel leaves him with a spare blanket and pillow, hoping the man doesn’t find the minimalism of the apartment displeasing. In the morning, Daniel serves him a bowl of his favorite cereal and watches, astonished, as a dove flies through the open window and onto Seongwoo’s shoulder.

“How quaint,” Seongwoo says, just as Jaehwan unlocks the door.

——

When Daniel finishes telling the tale, Jaehwan nods. He doesn’t comment anything at first, because he has half a tangerine in his mouth, but when he swallows it down he has a few things to say.

“Okay. Honestly, not that unbelievable. I’ve heard worse. That whole ‘other world’ bit makes sense, kind of.” Daniel gawks, surprised at how well he’s taking it. “I mean, even if you were piss-drunk, you aren’t creative enough for a story like that. Hallucinations wouldn’t do you good either. Any original thoughts that come from your head aren’t worth squat.”

“Should I take that as a compliment or insult?”

Jaehwan lifts up his arms, shrugging. He looks to the living room. “The guy is summoning pigeons now,” he says, alarmed. “Pigeons, Daniel. _Pigeons_. The rats of the fucking sky, I’m—”

Daniel hears cooing coming from the other room (the pigeons) and also some squeaking (the rodents). While the thought of so many filthy creatures in his home makes his skin crawl, he can’t help but grin as he asks Jaehwan, “Does that mean he can stay?”

“As long as he doesn’t go into my room and he stops calling me a peasant. Shit, how many fucking pigeons—”

Spoiler alert: Seongwoo doesn’t stop calling Jaehwan a peasant, but he does hereby declare Jaehwan’s room “too dangerous for any sane human to enter.” Daniel concurs, though his room is in a similar disarray and Seongwoo must declare it unsafe as well.

Understandably.

——

Having a prince adjust to the modern, “commoner” lifestyle proves difficult.

For one thing, the clothes are a dilemma. Seongwoo had warped into this world with only the clothes off his back. The prince getup has to go. Since Daniel is the de facto caretaker of Seongwoo, he buys him a few outfits to look like an average unemployed guy in his twenties — sweatpants and tracksuits, jerseys and gym shorts, a pair of velcro sandals and low-rise socks. Daniel isn’t made out of money, so he also lets Seongwoo borrow his own clothes, which are considerably less plain. Seongwoo is taller, but Daniel is broader; the shirts hang loose around Seongwoo’s frame and the pants are a few centimeters short. Still, Seongwoo decides that he enjoys taking from Daniel’s closet more than wearing his own attire, which means Daniel’s clothes frequently go missing and Seongwoo only gives him an insolent smirk in return.

There’s also a huge problem with food. Apparently, in Seongwoo’s world, he had never needed to pay for his meals. Given, he’s a prince and is waited on by bustling servants in the castle, many of whom have taken months to memorize Seongwoo’s extremely specific preferences. Here, Seongwoo isn’t rude to the servers, which Daniel is thankful for, but he has no concept of portioning his food and holding back the urge to order everything in the restaurant. Daniel learns this the hard way after their first outing to a chicken shop, not paying enough attention to the prince, who tells the waiter to “cook us as many of the finest chickens you have to offer,” which translates to ten baskets of wings and drumsticks.

(At their second outing, sitting inside a small barbeque restaurant, Daniel plucks the menu from Seongwoo’s hands and slides it out of his reach. “I’m sorry, Prince Seongwoo. You’ve lost your ordering privileges.”

Seongwoo frowns. “Says who?”

“Says my wallet,” Daniel says. He lets Seongwoo order Coke, though, because they don’t have that in his world and Daniel can spare that much for him not to be sulky during dinner.)

Most importantly, Daniel realizes, Seongwoo has to get used to a life without magic. Animals don’t talk. Trees don’t dance. The wind doesn’t sing. Seongwoo grows downcast as Daniel has to tell him what is and isn’t in this world. Mirrors only have reflections. Flowers don’t bloom when you sing to them. It hurts Daniel as much as telling a kid that Santa, the Tooth Fairy, _and_ the Easter Bunny aren’t real, repeatedly.

According to Seongwoo, he fairing well. He’s learning. It’s different, not damning. Daniel goes to work every morning, tells Seongwoo to call if he needs anything, and comes back to find Seongwoo watching TV, eyes rapt on the flickering images. Seongwoo tells Daniel of his adventures of the day, asks what it means when people do this or that, and even delves into anecdotes from his world as Daniel cooks dinner. Those nights are fun, especially when Jaehwan is there to tell Seongwoo stories of influential music stars he works with who live unhealthy and unrealistic lifestyles.

Today marks exactly one week since Seongwoo had been transported to this world. It feels like any other weekend. Daniel is at home, lounging on the couch and munching on jellies, _Big Hero 6_ playing on the TV. In his bedroom, Jaehwan is having a fit; songwriting isn’t going right, tracks aren’t meshing well, and Seongwoo is of no help as he pesters him to play a game of chess. (“I don’t know how the hell chess works, Mr. Prince. I don’t have the attention span.”) Seongwoo tries to console him but only manages to make Jaehwan more upset, a reaction he hadn’t anticipated.

Daniel knows that the best way to deal with these situations is to get out of Jaehwan’s hair, allowing him to cool down alone, so that’s what Daniel intends to do. He takes Seongwoo by the collar and drags him out of the apartment, ignoring the prince’s stubborn desire to play a sophisticated strategy game Daniel has no intention of learning.

The park by the apartment complex is a good place to kill time. Most of it is open field, surrounded by trees, with a dirt path that spans from the ends of the area. Food trucks or cart vendors are typically dotted around the park, racking revenue from the foot traffic. Live performances, such as street performers, happen here often, too. Near the front gate of the park there is a large fountain, tall and gray, with mermaid statues around the ring, holding conch shells that shoot water into the center.

Daniel spots an ice cream truck as they walk into the park. He buys a rocky-road cone for himself and a pistachio cone for Seongwoo. They settle on a bench overlooking the fountain. On any other day, Daniel would walk Seongwoo down his favorite path farther in, but the weather is humid and more bugs are closer to the trees. Daniel and bugs don’t and won’t ever get along, and he isn’t going to mess with the forces of nature to ever change that.

Seongwoo tentatively licks at his ice cream, skeptical at its taste. Then, he tries some of Daniel’s and decides he likes that flavor better. Daniel switches the cones, sighing, and Seongwoo hums cheerfully.

As he eats the wafer cone, nibbling at it like a young chipmunk, disregarding stray crumbs, Seongwoo asks suddenly, “Do you believe in true love, Kang Daniel?”

Daniel blinks at him. Seongwoo has a curious expression on his face, and Daniel understands that this may be another one of the many worldly differences he and Seongwoo share. The question falls in the same category as “Where are the centaurs?” and “What use is a doctor when you could have a healing mage?” Seongwoo has no problem posing his inquiries to Daniel, enjoying how the younger man fumbles to explain the “simplest” of concepts to a prince of another world. The toaster, for one, had been difficult for Daniel to put into words.

(“This,” Daniel had started, waiting for his bread to toast, “is like an oven. For your bread only. You can put up to four slices of bread in it, and it’ll cook in about five to ten minutes.”

Seongwoo had scoffed, “What use is that? It’d taste much better straight from a fire.”

“Yeah, sure, but not a lot of people are willing to roast their toast over an open flame.” The toaster had dinged, and Daniel had reached for the toast, cursing when he burned his fingertips. He’d touched his ear and turned to see Seongwoo giving him a pitying look.

“See, now that wouldn’t have happened if you’d been baking it over a flame. You’d have it placed on a stone tablet, nowhere near your delicate skin.”

“Be quiet.”)

This question is a lot deeper than what makes bread toast. Love is a philosophy. Love is a mystery. Love is something Daniel hasn’t thought too hard of for a while, because it brings back memories he’s still unsure whether he wants erased or saved, resurrected or buried. Seongwoo is asking for Daniel’s opinion on _true_ love, and Daniel?

Daniel just wants to finish his ice cream.

He kicks his foot, sending several pebbles across the dirt trail. “I... don’t know. I can’t say for certain.”

“Why’s that?”

Daniel stares ahead, lips thinned. Explaining why he doesn’t know something makes him feel like he’s back in college, coming up with excuses rather than reasons. He hasn’t talked about love, not seriously. For Seongwoo and the sake of his curiosity, maybe it’s time to give it a shot.

“I was... in a relationship, not too long ago,” Daniel confesses, swallowing down an untimely laugh. It’s a nervous tick. “We’d been together for two— almost two years. I loved everything about him — how he laughed, what he talked about, how small he was. And his _voice_.” Unconsciously, Daniel starts to smile. “The birds were always singing with him. I told him every time I listened. He’d laugh, and I loved it.” His smile fades slightly. “Yeah, I... I thought we were true love.”

Seongwoo makes a noise of interest. He’s finished his ice cream and is now flicking the crumbs off his shirt. “Fascinating,” he comments offhandedly, like Daniel had told him his opinion of pineapples on pizza rather than love. He tilts his head. “Then, what happened?”

“Uh, well, people change. People can fall out of love. It happens all the time.” Daniel isn’t normally this much of a pessimist, but in the face of Ong Seongwoo, real-life prince, he has to be the more rational one. “I don’t know if I can say true love exists since Sungwoon — that’s his name — fell out of love with me. It doesn’t feel good, if that makes any sense.”

“Oh.” Seongwoo looks devastated for Daniel, as if he can feel the heartbreak Daniel went through, as if he can empathize or relate. He places a hand on Daniel’s knee and asks softly, “What about you?”

“What _about_ me?”

Seongwoo smiles, sad but wise. “Did you fall out of love with Sungwoon, as well?”

Daniel doesn’t respond.

It’s been nearly two months since he and Sungwoon cut all ties. Although he doesn’t spend the weekends wallowing at bars anymore, because Seongwoo is here and he has to be a good host, Daniel still mopes. Mopes in the most minute, painful ways. He’ll remember little details of his life Sungwoon fit himself into, hold onto them and reminiscence of what was. Shirts that are way too small for Daniel wedged underneath the bed. The new pair of earrings Daniel hasn’t taken out of the packaging yet. Notes hidden under his work keyboard that read messages like _cheering you on ^^_ with misshapen hearts below the messy scrawl.

Can Daniel say he’s fallen out of love?

“I... don’t know,” he says, finally.

Springing to his feet, Seongwoo stands in front of Daniel, accessing him purposefully. “If you’re still in love with him, you should win him back. A grand gesture!” He clasps his hands together and starts bounding left and right excitedly. “A song, perhaps self-composed, with skilled musicians and dancers. Wreaths of carnations and baby’s breath at every turn. You can bring a carriage of horses, the view adorned by twinkling—”

Seongwoo’s master plan is interrupted by Daniel bursting into laughter, shaking his head and clutching onto his stomach. Daniel tends to laugh at things that aren’t worth laughing at, but this? Seongwoo is pulling goofy expressions on his face, throwing his hands in the air like he’s tossing rose petals, spinning in circles with arms outstretched, being anything but what Daniel would imagine a prince would be.

It’s not funny! It’s Seongwoo, being _Seongwoo_ , unintentionally making Daniel chuckle until his sides hurt by trying to convince him to “win back” Sungwoon. To Daniel, it’s just _laughable_.

“No, stop, please,” Daniel wheezes. Seongwoo stops immediately, letting his mouth hang open like he’s frozen in time. Daniel can’t help but let out a snort, and Seongwoo looks a mixture between satisfied and offended. “That won’t happen, Prince Seongwoo. Me and Sungwoon — it’s over. I can’t go back.”

Seongwoo plops onto the bench. “And why not? I see nothing wrong with trying to rekindle his affections for you.”

“It doesn’t work like that,” Daniel says. “In this world, people move on. Grand gestures aren’t typically for getting back together. Those things are for, like, proposals. Asking someone to marry you, y’know.”

A glint comes to Seongwoo’s eye and he sits straighter. “Then—”

“I’m not proposing to Sungwoon either!” Daniel exclaims, incredulous, and Seongwoo slumps. “I’m okay, really. Even if I’m a little bit in love with him, my feelings can disappear with time. Time heals all wounds.”

Seongwoo murmurs, “Back in my world, we have _potions_ for that.”

Daniel rolls his eyes. He watches as a pair of ducks land in the fountain, splashing the surface of the water. One of them flips over, and it reminds Daniel of Jaehwan after he wakes up from a midday nap. He giggles.

Struck with an epiphany, he turns to Seongwoo. “Prince Seongwoo, does your world have true love?”

“All worlds have true love, Kang Daniel,” Seongwoo answers simply. He puts his chin in his hand, smiling at the fountain and pointing at the ducks. “Do you officiate animal weddings here? The stone mermaidens can be witnesses.”

“Possibly,” Daniel laughs.

Daniel gasps as the overturned duck flails under the water, caught on the ledge, and promptly fails at preventing Seongwoo from jumping into the fountain to save it. Though, it does make for a nice photo.

——

“My coronation is at the beginning of autumn, four weeks from now,” Seongwoo says. He slurps his black bean noodles and grabs a slice of pickled radish with his chopsticks. “If time runs at the same pace, I am to be crowned king at Sunday’s sundown.”

“Wow, that’s amazing,” Jaehwan comments with no enthusiasm whatsoever. If they weren’t in the middle of dinner, Seongwoo would surely flick his nose. Daniel is very glad he doesn’t; it would definitely lead to food fight and he has no clue how to get rid of black bean sauce stains from the carpet.

“It was only a thought,” Seongwoo grumbles.

Jaehwan lifts his bowl up and fills his mouth with the short chops of noodles left behind. “Why don’t you go back?” he asks. “I mean, you wouldn’t wanna miss that.”

Seongwoo shrugs, stirring his noodles. “I don’t know how,” he says. “Frankly, I’d rather stay here. This is—” He gestures around the apartment, “—better.”

“Being poor is better than being a king?” snorts Jaehwan.

“I wasn’t a king.”

“Yet,” Daniel says. Seongwoo raises an eyebrow at him. “What? That’s true.”

Sighing, Seongwoo runs a hand through his hair and shakes his head. “I wasn’t a king,” he repeats casually. “A queen is my mother, a princess is my sister, a king is my father — which makes me, Ong Seongwoo, a prince of the Ong Kingdom.”

“Man, I wish I sounded that cool talking about my family tree,” Jaehwan says, forlorn. “I got an uncle in Jeju who grows oranges. That’s something.” Seongwoo pats his back.

“Living in your world must be so neat, Prince Seongwoo,” Daniel proclaims. “Fairies. Magic. Talking animals. It’d be awesome to talk to a cat and have it talk back.”

“Cats don’t have much to say,” Seongwoo chuckles. “Fairies can get annoying, but the magic — yes. That, I miss dearly.”

Jaehwan’s chopsticks clatter on his plate as he sets them down, leaning across the table to squint at Seongwoo. “How does that even work? Do you wave magic wands or pull bunnies out of hats? Or is it shooting firebolts out of your hands?”

“Well, we have magicians,” Seongwoo declares. “That is the broadest term for those who practice magic. Depending on whom you speak with, they alternatively call themselves witches, sorcerers, wizards—”

“Like Harry Potter?” Daniel quips. He’s met with an unimpressed stare from Jaehwan and a puzzled “hm” from Seongwoo. “Guess that reference goes right over your head, huh. Please ignore me and keep explaining.”

Seongwoo smiles. “Magicians have all kinds of jobs. Gardeners who use effective growth spells to better our crop yields. Fishermen who enchant their lures and bait. Potion-makers who provide bottles of the finest elixirs to heal the sick. Most of the magicians I knew in the castle were consultants.”

“What’d you get consulted on?” Jaehwan inquires.

“Foreign affairs. Politics. What sort of treats to feed our horses so they’d listen to us.” Seongwoo’s words get faster, more animated, as he’s caught up in the memories. “Some of them taught me basic spells and charms. I’d wanted to help the Bae Dynasty with their livestock shortage, so a young witch helped me with a spell to increase breeding rates. He’s a bubbly fellow, always willing to—”

Seongwoo pauses abruptly, clamping his mouth shut. “I-I believe I’m rambling now,” he stammers, going pink. “I shouldn’t be boring you with this, or telling you of miscellaneous magicians.”

“Keep the bore going,” Jaehwan urges. “It’s loads more interesting than anything Daniel has to say.”

“Hey!”

Seongwoo lays his hand on Daniel’s shoulder. “Sir, I appreciate you,” he says. Daniel smiles. “Albeit, your life revolves around fictional cartoon characters, domesticated felines, and sugary snacks. You are, objectively, a _tad_ uninteresting.”

Jaehwan’s cackle is ear-piercingly shrill and horrifying, but Daniel has known him for nearly a decade and can safely say that he means no harm. Seongwoo is still getting used to it, so Daniel is satisfied when he sees Seongwoo flinch at Jaehwan’s ungodly volume.

“I have good stories,” Daniel argues, once Jaehwan has quieted. “Like, during my mentor-mentee program with Woojin, we developed a—”

Jaehwan grimaces. “You’re gonna make us listen to your sad accountant life? Dude.” Daniel pouts.

“Keep talking, Daniel,” Seongwoo says, laughing. “What’s it like being an accountant?”

Daniel beams while Jaehwan groans, slinking out of his seat to escape an hour of Daniel droning on about his favorite co-workers and coffee blends.

——

Jaehwan is in the middle of brushing his teeth when there’s a knock on the front door. He frowns at the mirror, rinses out his mouth, and splashes his face with water, idly smoothing down his hair as he goes to answer it. No one visits uninvited, so he’s wondering if Daniel had ordered something online again. Jaehwan hopes not; it really takes a load of self-deprecation to sign for a package containing Daniel’s Spider-Man body pillow.

What— Well, _who_ Jaehwan sees makes him drop his jaw, starstruck.

The man is heart-stoppingly beautiful, skin smooth and unblemished. He has narrow eyes, a high nose, and a small mouth that curls at the corners to show a kittenish smile. Dark brown hair falls in front of his forehead, held back at the side by a small rose-colored brooch encrusted with jewels. His apparel is of the same type Seongwoo had arrived here in, regal cloth and sparkles, which can only mean one thing.

“I’m Prince Minhyun, of the Hwang Empire,” the man introduces. His voice makes Jaehwan feel like he’s holding a steaming cup of honey-lemon tea infused with rosemary. God, Jaehwan is itching for his lyric notebook. “You must’ve heard of me.”

Snapping out of his thoughts, Jaehwan sniffles loudly and tries his hardest to appear aloof. “Can’t say that I have, buddy.” He watches Minhyun’s expression fall, which he shouldn’t find endearing but he does anyway. “Let me guess: you’re looking for Prince Seongwoo.”

Minhyun’s bright smile returns. “Yes, that’s right,” he says eagerly. “Have you seen him?”

“I’ve seen too much of him,” Jaehwan huffs, but Minhyun doesn’t sense the animosity. He opens the door wider. “Come on in. If I let in any bugs, Daniel will smother me in my sleep.”

“That is... most concerning.”

Jaehwan shrugs. “Nah, it’s cool. I’ve smothered him for worse.” He lets Minhyun sit on the couch and then realizes he hasn’t introduced himself yet. “Oh, right. Hi, I’m Kim Jaehwan. I live here.”

Although Jaehwan doesn’t offer it, Minhyun reaches out for his hand and gives him a firm handshake. Wow, the prince has soft hands, too. Nice.

“Excuse me for my abruptness, but where is Seongwoo?”

Jaehwan shrugs. He pulls out Daniel’s hidden snack box from under the TV stand and steals an apple jelly. “Hell if I know,” he says, plopping beside Minhyun and turning on the TV.

Minhyun’s eyes go wide, stare going from Jaehwan to the TV (which he must be pretty shocked by, though doing a good job at hiding it; Seongwoo had sat in front of it for two uninterrupted hours at its first introduction to him).

“I _thought_ you said you knew,” he says, and it brings Jaehwan a mildly sadistic joy to see him frazzled.

“You’re putting words into my mouth. I never _said_ anything about knowing where he is at this very moment.” Jaehwan holds out a grape jelly to Minhyun, who warily takes it. “Right now, he’s with Daniel. They’ll be back in an hour in an hour or two, tops. That’s how it is nowadays.”

Whenever Daniel has free time, Seongwoo practically demands to have it dedicated to him. During the week, he keeps Daniel busy by asking him how to use certain electronics and about other miscellaneous inquiries he’d come up with while the younger man was at work. Jaehwan is sometimes at home with Seongwoo during the day, but the prince doesn’t like how Jaehwan answers questions — half-assed or half-wrong. Seongwoo has tried to relate to Jaehwan, but most of their conversations start and end with the same exasperated sighs. Even if Seongwoo hasn’t known him for long, he can almost always tell when Jaehwan is lying.

(Jaehwan is cheeky, so when an opportunity to dupe someone arises, who is he to pass it up? And he can’t help it if he doesn’t know and can’t explain the intricacies of indoor plumbing to Seongwoo. His saint name may be Mario, but he’s actually more of a Yoshi kind of guy.)

On the weekends, Seongwoo has been asking Daniel to take him out of the apartment. Daniel, as a tour guide, wears a backwards snapback and holds a pocket notebook labeled _places 4 ong_. Jaehwan has peeked into it a few times, reading the lists of restaurants, nearby attractions, and random phrases that Daniel left in the margins. For example, one page is dedicated to _cool busking spots_ while another has an address and the bullet point _quiet bookstore, good coffee_. Jaehwan finds it sweet and very Daniel-like.

Today, Daniel is taking Seongwoo to his favorite bakeries. There are six on Daniel’s list, and since they left a few hours ago they must be halfway done by now. (It’s a miracle Daniel’s teeth aren’t rotten yet. He hasn’t been to a dentist in almost a year, too scared of the needles, so it may be too early to tell. Hopefully Seongwoo brought toothbrushes.)

“Daniel?” Minhyun echoes, munching on the jelly. “Is this man related to you?”

“Nope. He’s my best friend. We live here together. Ever since Seongwoo popped out of the ground, Daniel’s been taking care of him.”

Minhyun blinks as Jaehwan passes him another jelly. “And how long has it been since Prince Seongwoo’s arrival?”

“Maybe... a month? Yeah, probably.” Jaehwan watches as Minhyun pulls an item from the inside of his vest, shining gold. “What’s with that compass?”

“It was meant to show me the way to Prince Seongwoo,” Minhyun says. He turns it over in his hand, and Jaehwan sees an undecipherable language carved on the back of it. “The thing must be cursed for it to behave this way.”

“You got customer service in your world?” Jaehwan snickers.

Minhyun frowns. “I am unsure of what that entails.”

“In a nutshell, someone to help you fix a problem you have with the stuff they gave you.”

Minhyun pulls out a slip of paper. “I have a written document on how the device functions. I’d taken the item from a mage, at no low price, so I’d hoped it was worth it.”

Jaehwan makes grabbing motions with his hands. “Lemme see.” Minhyun hands him the sheet, and Jaehwan squints. “I can’t read this, the fuck.”

Laughing, Minhyun recites the first line, “ _This compass shall point the way to whom your heart longs for most._ ” (He has a nice laugh.) “The writing is in a near forgotten tongue, but we learn about it in our studies.”

“Sounds pretty poetic,” Jaehwan hums, impressed. He can use that line in the next song he writes. He’s been having a creative block, but maybe a few more conversations with Minhyun will change things. He seems like the type of guy who would read children bedtime stories in his spare time. Charitable, kind. On an unrelated note, it’s also very easy to get a rise out of him.

“Hey, are you in love with Prince Seongwoo or something? It sounds like that’s a love compass.”

Minhyun burns bright red and shakes his head, stammering, “N-No! I would never! My feelings are strictly platonic!” He settles down, fanning his ears. “I-I’d just been so worried for the prince. I believed the compass would steer me in his direction.”

“I mean, it sort of worked. He’s been living here. Maybe your love compass just found his scent, like one of those bomb dogs that sniff out explosives.” Minhyun stares blankly at him. Jaehwan grins. “Wanna wait? I got popcorn and hours of melodramas to catch up on.”

Minhyun leans back, getting comfortable. “Why not?”

Compared to Seongwoo, Minhyun is less talkative (and obnoxious). He still asks questions now and then, about the workings of the world, which Jaehwan answers semi-honestly, but Minhyun is very intuitive and can somehow deduce the truth from the low budget TV series they’re watching. Jaehwan is impressed. Taken aback, even.

Jaehwan vaguely remembers hearing Seongwoo talk about the neighboring kingdoms to his own. The Hwang Empire. A best friend there. Minhyun gives another introduction — much more formal, much more extensive, much more boring — to Jaehwan that essentially equates him to the same level of princeliness as Seongwoo. He doesn’t seem keen on engaging in small talk, his sentences awkwardly tapering out when he doesn’t know how to finish them, so he sits with Jaehwan and watches the show, calm and quiet.

Eventually, Minhyun knocks out. Jaehwan doesn’t blame him. This episode of _Lovers in Bloom_ is mediocre at best, and traveling from world to world must take a lot out of you. Jaehwan wonders if he should grab him a blanket or maybe even a towel, but that would require him getting up and...

Nah. Body heat is good enough. Jaehwan huddles closer to the prince, trying not to get glitter up his nose.

After few more episodes of drama, Jaehwan hears the front door opening and closing.

“Jaehwan, we’re back! I hope you have pants on, because otherwise, yuck, no one wants to see that mess.”

Jaehwan lolls his head to the side as he watches Seongwoo and Daniel enter the apartment. “Hate to break it to you, but I don’t believe in pants. And we got a visitor, folks.”

Daniel makes a face, confused, and Seongwoo instinctively walks towards the living room to ask for clarification. In that time, Jaehwan nudges Minhyun, making the prince rouse and match wide-eyed expressions with Seongwoo. The nap doesn’t show at all on Minhyun’s face, still as handsome as it was an hour ago. Life is unfair for people like Jaehwan, but at least he has talent.

Seongwoo is stunned, every muscle in his body locked. “Minhyun,” he whispers. “What— How—”

Daniel comes over, too, as Minhyun throws himself into Seongwoo’s arms, hugging him impossibly tight as he peppers Seongwoo’s face with kisses. Jaehwan recalls Minhyun mentioning how he’s quite touchy and affectionate, but Daniel doesn’t know that, nor does he even know who Minhyun is, which must explain why he looks so spooked.

Pulling back, Seongwoo lets out a strangled noise as he inquires, “Dearest friend, why are you here? What becomes of your kingdom for you to leave it behind?”

“A question I should be asking of you,” Minhyun retorts, but he’s smiling from ear-to-ear and hugging Seongwoo once more. “Oh, friend, I’ve missed you. I’ve worried.”

“Uh.” Daniel clears his throat, drawing all eyes on him. “Who— Who’s this?” As an afterthought: “I’m Daniel?”

Bemused, Jaehwan answers, “Minhyun— Ah, _Prince_ Minhyun is hear to collect our freeloader.” He beams. “Say goodbye, Daniel. My home will now be at total peace.”

The reaction Jaehwan expects is a scoff, maybe a poorly executed comeback that Jaehwan would call “child’s play, needs more _oomph_.” All he gets, though, is a vacant stare and silence from his best friend as Minhyun and Seongwoo talk in hushed tones. Frankly speaking, it’s off-putting.

“Um, Daniel?”

“Huh?” Daniel whips his head to him, and he blinks rapidly as he starts to nod. “Oh. Oh, yeah.” He chuckles nervously, and Jaehwan knows that something is wrong. The Awkward Daniel Laugh is a telltale sign of it.

Naturally, Jaehwan swoops in for the metaphorical save. “When are you leaving, dear princes?” he asks, springing to his feet, successfully making the two royals break apart. Daniel looks better, more relieved.

Minhyun glances at Seongwoo and then turns to Jaehwan. “Leaving is not an option. Not at this moment.”

“What,” says Jaehwan.

“The portal between our worlds opens fully only on the day of a full moon,” Minhyun continues. “We have to wait until then.”

“What,” says Jaehwan. Behind him, Daniel laughs.

“Can’t get rid of me that easily,” Seongwoo leers, slapping Jaehwan on the back. Daniel laughs again, and God, he’s endearing, but Jaehwan could really use some moral support for this tragedy.

“We now have two freeloaders in our home,” Jaehwan grumbles. “Fan-fucking-tastic.”

“I can cook,” Minhyun chirps, “and clean.”

“Okay, one freeloader and a maid. Fan-fucking-tastic.”

Later, Daniel welcomes Minhyun by handing him a broom and dustpan. Jaehwan pushes his dirty laundry in Minhyun’s direction and Seongwoo, bless his soul, tells him he’s forbidden to attract any wild animals and insects into the apartment while he cleans.

——

“You’re gonna break my stapler,” Daniel huffs. Seongwoo doesn’t turn, doesn’t even _look_ at Daniel as he sends another stray staple flying into the air. It’s a miracle no one has gotten hit yet. “Hey, give it to me. You’ll hurt yourself.”

Seongwoo spins around in the swivel chair, scooting himself to the other side of Daniel’s cubicle so Daniel can confiscate the stapler. “For what reason would you keep miniaturized weapons here anyway? It’s baffling.” He picks up a pair of scissors and snips it in Daniel’s direction. “I could kill you with this.”

“Stop,” Daniel says, but he can’t prevent the laugh from bubbling past his lips. Seongwoo puts the scissors down and gestures for him to explain. “Those are _safety_ scissors. Will barely leave a scratch unless you really tried. And this—” Daniel holds up the stapler, “—we use to keep papers together. Nowadays, almost everything is digitalized. Put on the computer, but physical documents are a must for the company. More official, I guess.”

“Strange.” Seongwoo purses his lips. “Scrolls hold better. The parchment is of the best quality.” He scrunches his nose. “Parchment smells better, also.”

“I’m pretty sure that’s because Jihoon spilled half a cup of coffee on our printer earlier this year.” At that moment, Daniel watches as the printer down the hall starts beeping loudly on its own accord. Jihoon, as if on cue, goes over and smacks it until it goes silent. “Christ, it’s mind-blowing that it hasn’t caught on fire or exploded.”

Seongwoo snickers, “Small miracles,” and starts rifling through Daniel’s pencil holders.

Today, the prince is at Daniel’s workplace for one reason and one reason only: boredom. He’s spent the last few days watching movies on Daniel’s laptop, bundled in blankets and snacking on Daniel’s jellies, not stepping a foot out the front door. The weather hasn’t been great, storms and hail attacking the city, so Seongwoo’s lone adventures are put on halt.

With another prince here, it would seem that he’d have more to do, but that’s not the case at all. Apparently, Minhyun likes being _productive_ as the bad weather persists. He’s on his second day of deep cleaning the apartment, and Seongwoo is figuratively and literally sick of sniffling from all the dust unearthed from every room. Minhyun, completely unapologetic, had told him, “Don’t sneeze onto the windows. I’ve just wiped those.”

Feeling sympathetic, Daniel had let Seongwoo come with him to work. Not to _work_ , but to observe Daniel in his natural habitat. Seongwoo had brightened and followed along obediently. Sejeong, the receptionist, had given Daniel a curious look as she printed Seongwoo a pass for the day.

(“Seriously?” she’d said, voice low. She had laughed, not even bothering to conceal it. “This can’t be real.”

“Can you— Can you hurry up?”

In his defense, Seongwoo had been having a very involved conversation with the starfish in the rectangular fish tank on display. The urgency from Daniel had been in fear of Seongwoo sticking his head in it.)

Now, halfway through the morning, Seongwoo has found that boredom permeates heavily here as well. He’s greeted a few of Daniel’s co-workers, made idle conversation. He’s explored a few areas where he’s allowed to go, but those are limited. It’s only a matter of time before his foot is incessantly nudging Daniel’s under his desk.

“May I play your handheld, three-dimensional electronic game device?”

Daniel frowns, not turning away from his monitor. “I don’t bring my 3DS to work.”

Seongwoo raises an eyebrow and cocks his head to the side. “If so, then what did I see you slip into your jacket pocket on the way here?”

“That—” Daniel ducks his head. Bashful, he mutters, “That was my PSP.” Seongwoo holds out his hand, smug. “Wow, you’re incredible.”

“I try.”

After Daniel gives him the PSP, Seongwoo busies himself with a mindless fighting game. He’s not half bad, but he clearly is a button-masher and gets the combos out of sheer luck. For the most part Seongwoo keeps silent, save for when his character gets hit hard and he hisses through his teeth. Daniel chuckles to himself whenever that happens, and Seongwoo makes sure to glare at him as his character is recovering.

Around eleven, there’s a knock on the outside of Daniel’s cubicle. It’s Woojin, the only guy who knocks on the cubicles despite being able to see the occupants completely. He says it’s common courtesy, and that clearing his throat to indicate his presence made him sound like he was a lawnmower, according to Jihoon. Woojin and Jihoon are strange, to say the least.

“Hey, kid,” Daniel greets. “What brings you here?”

Woojin lifts his bulky laptop above his head. “Had to ask a question about the balance sheet.” He stares at Seongwoo, spinning in his chair as he plays Daniel’s PSP, and asks, “Who’s the prince?”

At the title, Seongwoo perks up and grins brightly, rising to his feet and doing a slight bow. “Seongwoo,” he says, reaching out a hand. “Ong Seongwoo. Pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

Shaking Seongwoo’s hand, Woojin blinks. “Hong Seongwoo?”

“ _Ong_ Seongwoo,” Seongwoo corrects, and Daniel holds in a snort as Seongwoo grimaces and falls back onto the chair. “Now, slightly _less_ of a pleasure, toothy fellow.”

“Um, weird.” Woojin turns back to Daniel and pats his laptop. “Hyung, help?”

Daniel laughs. “I gotcha.”

Woojin’s question is easily answered after a few clicks and cell merges. He’s a smart kid, so he catches on quickly. Seongwoo does a shoddy job at trying to look uninterested. Woojin catches him peering over his shoulder enough times for an embarrassed blush to develop on Seongwoo’s cheeks. Woojin snorts.

By the time Daniel is done explaining everything, Woojin blows out a puff of air and cracks his knuckles. “Yo, thanks, hyung. I wouldn’t have figured that out without you.”

“Anytime,” Daniel says.

Woojin picks up his laptop, but before he goes he leans over the cubicle and not-so discreetly glances at Seongwoo. “So, uh, does the Boss Man know that you brought your BF to work? Not that I’m against it, hyung. You do you, live your life, be happy, but I dunno. Sounds like an HR issue.”

While Seongwoo looks up, none the wiser, Daniel coughs into his hand and says, “Jisung hyung knows—” Woojin looks impressed, “—and it’s not what you think. Honest to God! My _friend_ is just visiting for the day.”

“Doesn’t he have a job?” Woojin asks, nose wrinkled, as if Seongwoo isn’t sitting right there and now boring holes into his skull.

“I am currently getting my priorities straightened,” Seongwoo says. He snaps his fingers at Woojin and winks. “Gleefully unemployed.”

“Oh. Cool, I guess.” Woojin waves. “See you around, then, Ong Seongwoo. And thanks again, Daniel hyung.”

Seongwoo and Daniel bid Woojin goodbye. Once he’s out of range, Seongwoo rolls towards Daniel and starts shaking him by the shoulders.

“That sparrow-like man-child knew I was a prince!” he exclaims. “Is he a mind reader? I wasn’t even _thinking_ about being a prince, though. Sorcery! This is—”

“He didn’t know,” Daniel interjects, making Seongwoo stop rattling him. “Also, he’s an intern, not— not a _man-child_. Woojin tends to call it like it is.” At Seongwoo’s confused stare, he elaborates, “You _look_ like a prince.”

That reasoning doesn’t satisfy Seongwoo. “What does that entail?”

It’s hard for Daniel to admit out loud, so he gestures vaguely with his hands. “C’mon. You know. You’ve been watching all those Disney movies.” When it’s clear Seongwoo isn’t catching on, Daniel sighs. “You’re handsome, Prince Seongwoo. That’s what.”

A wry smiles makes its way onto Seongwoo’s face. “Obviously.” Daniel rolls his eyes. “The sparrow— _Woojin_ also referred to me as...” He taps his chin. “Your BF. What does that mean?”

Daniel makes a whining sound as he bites his lip. “I-It’s nothing. Woojin likes to tease, too.” He refuses to meet Seongwoo’s eyes as he explains, “BF stands for boyfriend. Significant other. Partner. That sorta thing.”

“Ah,” Seongwoo says. “That young man... He thought I was your beloved?” Daniel, holding in a sigh, nods. “Cute.”

“What’s so cute about that?” Daniel scoffs.

“Me,” Seongwoo declares. The answer gets Daniel to bring his head up and stare disbelievingly at the prince, only to see Seongwoo grinning with his hands on his cheeks. “I am cute.”

“Incredible,” Daniel laughs, shaking his head. Seongwoo beams.

Later, they have lunch with Jihoon and Woojin in the breakroom. Jihoon is as surprised at Seongwoo’s character as Woojin had been, but he gets used to the flamboyance and exaggeration. He seems to enjoy Seongwoo’s presence, from his jokes to his cheer, and warms up easily — Jihoon’s everyday weirdness complements Seongwoo’s princely weirdness. As his co-workers leave, Daniel catches Jihoon whispering to Woojin, “I think I like him more than Sungwoon.”

Daniel chooses not to acknowledge the remark. Seongwoo doesn’t notice anyway; Daniel doesn’t want to make this whole situation any more complicated than it already is.

——

It’s nearing three a.m., and Daniel is wide awake. He believes he’s an unhealthy mix of a night owl and an insomniac. This trait of his activates mostly on the weekends, thankfully, which means he stays up until dawn reading comics, online shopping, or watching movies on his phone. Before the princes came along, he’d stayed in the living room and played videogames on the TV, too. Since the princes sleep on the couches now, he doesn’t want to risk waking them.

Tonight has been a night to catch up on his comics. He has a sizable stack of manga and half a dozen webtoons bookmarked on his phone. It’s a lot to get through, but Daniel has done it before. By the time he realizes he’s thirsty, he’s done with the stack of manga. It’s an accomplishment, because that normally takes him until four.

Daniel pads to the kitchen, keeping quiet as he passes by the couches. He’s surprised to see the light already on and wonders if he’d forgotten to turn it off before bed. There’s the faint sound of the kettle, too. He pokes his head through the door and makes a startled noise.

Seongwoo looks up from the table, where papers are scattered in front of him, and grins. “Greetings and salutations.”

Laughing, Daniel shuffles over and slides into the chair across from him. “Hey, Prince Seongwoo. What’s keeping you up?”

“Thinking about the state of my kingdom. Who’s feeding my dog. Where my family believes me to be. How Minhyun wants to imprison the witch who sent me here. My coronation.” Seongwoo smiles. “And you?”

Daniel scratches his neck, embarrassed. “Uh, the latest volume of _One Punch Man_. A comic book. Not as serious.”

“Figures,” chuckles Seongwoo.

“Yeah, I’m boring and predictable. What else is there to say?”

Seongwoo shakes his head. “No, it’s nice.” The kettle shrieks, high-pitched, and he gets up. “Would you care for some tea, Daniel?”

“Sure,” Daniel says. He watches Seongwoo reach into the cabinets and bites back a grin — the movements are so natural, as if he actually lives here and isn’t a temporary guest. “Didn’t know we had tea. I normally have coffee.”

“You have both, in the cupboards,” Seongwoo hums. “The tea is a new addition. Jaehwan claims it helps with his headaches.” He turns to Daniel, hands paused as they hold two different cartons. “Any preference?”

“What do we have?”

Seongwoo reads the labels. “Black, green, chamomile, herbal, oolong, jasmine, orange—”

“I don’t know why I asked,” Daniel cuts in. “I know shit about tea. Surprise me.”

“We’ll both have herbal, then.”

Daniel watches as Seongwoo takes out the tea bags and places them into two mugs. Seongwoo’s mug is galaxy-themed, a present from Jisung after Daniel and Jaehwan had gotten an apartment. The other mug he grabs is the one Daniel uses for coffee, the one with peaches on it, pink on the handle. Seongwoo pours the hot water into the mugs and brings them over.

Daniel dips his head down to sip at it and hisses, “ _Hot_.” He sticks out his tongue. “Ah, I think I burned myself.”

“You have to wait for it to cool,” Seongwoo says, voice laced with amusement. He picks up a black pen. “Have you no patience?”

“I have none,” Daniel responds, and Seongwoo shakes his head. He looks at the papers on the table, some filled while others are left blank. “What’re you writing?”

“Oh, just some letters.”

Daniel lays his chin on his arms arms as he blows cool air onto his tea. “Why? Are you bringing them back to your world? Is it like a diary?”

“Not exactly,” Seongwoo says. “They... It’s more like _thank you_ notes. Showing my gratitude. I’m bringing them back to my world, yes.” He sighs, pen tip paused on a line. “Expressing these sentiments into condensed writing, however, is highly difficult.”

“I’m no good with words either, Prince Seongwoo. That’s why I’m an accountant,” Daniel admits. “Who’ve you written to so far?”

“My family — father, mother, sister. A few servants. Some of my companions outside the castle. The stable boy.”

Daniel raises his eyebrows. “The stable boy? Isn’t that a guy who takes care of the horses?”

“Indeed. Guanlin is a very kind and reliable young man. He’s destined for great things.” Seongwoo smiles. “He shows potential.”

“How would you know?” Daniel asks, curious.

“Intuition,” Seongwoo answers. “Mostly faith.”

“Blind faith?”

Seongwoo shakes his head. He pokes the tip of Daniel’s nose with the back of his pen. “I’ve seen him enough times to envision his future. Guanlin is worth so much more than a caretaker for the horses. I want him to know that.”

“How sweet,” Daniel coos. He sips his tea, thankfully now cooled enough to drink, and asks, “Why can’t you tell him in person?”

Seongwoo laughs, but it sounds insincere. “I wouldn’t dare,” he says. “Such is the life of a king. Tradition runs deep. Conversing freely with common folk is unheard of. Even more blasphemous to instill dreams and fantasies into their minds.”

“You’re not a king.” Seongwoo spares a glance at Daniel, who shoots him a smile. “Not yet, Prince Seongwoo.”

Seongwoo rests his chin on his hand. “When I go back, I will soon be.” He keeps writing, like he wants Daniel to drop it, but Daniel presses on.

“Hey, maybe you could change your world. Or, well, start smaller. Change your kingdom. Normalize interaction between the ruling and the ruled. Make royalty approachable and down to earth.” Daniel shrugs, sipping at his tea. “I don’t know. I’m rambling.”

“I’ll... think about it,” Seongwoo says. Daniel brightens.

“Is it okay that I’m here watching you write?” Daniel asks. He bites his lip, wondering if it comes off as creepy. “I-I promise I’ll try not to read. Upside-down is not my forte.”

“I have no qualms with your presence,” assures Seongwoo. Before he starts to write again, he clinks mugs with Daniel, smiling.

Seongwoo’s handwriting, from what Daniel can tell from the movements, is precise and elegant. Daniel watches him trace strokes with the pen, curving and curling characters at his whim. Daniel tries not to read, but it’s inevitable that his eyes catch onto words he recognizes. “Love” and “world” and “I apologize” are the phrases he sees most, but he doesn’t know how to connect the dots.

“What do you need to apologize for?” is the question Daniel doesn’t ask, because he falls asleep on the table before he can.

The next morning Daniel wakes up in his bed, half a blanket covering him. He’s missing the mouthguard that stops him from grinding his teeth, which is strange. It’s only when he shuffles to the kitchen and sees two mugs drying in the sink that he remembers.

Seongwoo. The prince is asleep on the couch, a crumpled paper by his head, a pen loosely held by his fingertips. He doesn’t have a blanket, which makes Daniel tut his tongue. Daniel goes back to his room and comes back to drape the blanket over Seongwoo’s body. Immediately, Seongwoo snuggles into it and sighs contentedly.

Daniel wonders how honored he must be to have a prince in his home.

Ah, two princes. Can’t forget about Minhyun.

——

“Road trip!” Jaehwan sings, unnecessarily showy as the others put their bags in the trunk. “I’ll teach the princes the joy of long car rides. It’s all about the snacks, music, and naps — in no particular order.”

“It’d be great if you’d put your stuff in the car,” Daniel notes offhandedly.

Minhyun chuckles as Jaehwan struggles to lift his suitcase. “Need any assistance?” Jaehwan scoffs, but continues to struggle. “I will take that as a yes.”

After everyone gets their bags in the car, it’s time to disembark. Daniel is already in the driver’s seat, starting the engine, so Jaehwan prepares to sit on the other side. However, Seongwoo is already there opening the door, putting his foot in, taking _Jaehwan’s seat_.

“What’s he doing?” Jaehwan asks, disbelieving.

“Getting into the motorized vehicle,” Seongwoo answers.

“As am I!” exclaims Minhyun, sticking his head out the backseat window. He tampers with the switch to roll it up and down, which makes Daniel consider activating the child lock to avoid any severed appendages.

Jaehwan crosses his arms over his chest and huffs, “I thought _I_ would have shotgun. To man the audio and be your navigator, Daniel! Does our friendship mean nothing to you?”

Daniel narrows his eyes at him. “First of all, this is coming from the guy who refuses to give me a present on my birthday because ‘we’re not on that level yet’.”

“Ouch,” Seongwoo says. Jaehwan glares. “Even I have to admit that’s excessive.”

“I’m always kidding and you know it!” cries Jaehwan. He wags a finger at Daniel. “Don’t quote me out of context, jerk.”

Daniel rolls his eyes and goes on, “Second, the aux cord is long as hell, so you can control it from the back. No problem there. Third—” He taps the navigation system, “—you, Kim Jaehwan, can’t read a map to save your life.”

“Who the fuck owns _maps_ anymore?”

“You know what I mean,” Daniel says. “You can barely pay attention to the GPS. I’ve missed exits and had to make hour-long detours because of you.”

Jaehwan relinquishes his anger and climbs into the backseat. “Fine. Fine! I’m sitting in the back with Mr. Clean for four hours, I guess. Get ready for some overly emotional pop ballads to start, Daniel. I hate you.”

“Hate you, too, buddy. Put on your seatbelt.”

The road trip’s origin is simple: Daniel has a meeting tomorrow in another province, four hours away, and the Trouble Trio had decided last minute to come along and see the sights. They’ll stay in the same hotel room for the night and go out for the day. Because of his work Daniel can’t come with; he’s stuck acting as the chauffeur, which isn’t completely fair, but it’s supposedly the downside of having a driver’s license.

Driving is good for Daniel. They leave in the afternoon, so the sun is bright in the sky. He enjoys the open road, the chatter the four of them start as the time passes. Jaehwan rips open three bags of chips to pass around, hands greasy with seasoning dust. Since Daniel is keen on keeping both hands on the wheel Seongwoo feeds him, slipping crackers and jellies past his lips. Minhyun enjoys all the snacks Jaehwan offers him, humming excitedly.

“Road trips are also about super personal stories,” says Jaehwan, feet propped on Minhyun’s lap. “What have you got, princes? I need some new lyric material. Have at it.”

“Jaehwan,” Daniel sighs. “Don’t do this.”

“It’s quite alright,” Minhyun assures. “We’d love to entertain you! Isn’t that right, Seongwoo?”

Seongwoo does a long, contemplative hum. “I’ve talked so much the last two months,” he says. “Where is the incentive? What do I have to gain?”

“You can tell all of Prince Minhyun’s embarrassing secrets,” Jaehwan proposes.

Grinning widely, Seongwoo brings down his head before snapping back up, expression serious. “I’ve been swayed. Ask away, Jaehwan. I am ready.”

Jaehwan beams, bringing out his notebook. “Okay, so! We’ve heard loads about your lives as princes. All the cool lessons and magic and stuff.” He gnaws the end of his pencil. “Have you ever diverged from that? For example, sneaking out to meet with your secret lover?”

Seongwoo lets out a bark of laughter, hitting his thigh. “Prince Minhyun is a prude, so he can’t answer that.”

“H-Hey!” Minhyun shouts. Jaehwan starts to scribble in his notes, causing Minhyun to redden. “I take my royal responsibilities very seriously. I don’t have time for— for tomfoolery.” He stuffs a handful of goldfish crackers into his mouth. “And I’m no p-prude. I’ve been kissed before!”

Again, Seongwoo laughs. “That hardly counts, friend. You kiss everyone!” He turns around and addresses Jaehwan, instinctively leaning towards him. “At a younger prince’s thirteenth birthday ball, instead of a normal trinket, Minhyun had kissed him square on the lips. The boy had been traumatized! Jinyoung had wanted to save his first kiss until he was _married_. Can you believe him?”

“How was _I_ supposed to know about that?” Minhyun murmurs, slumping. “Don’t give me that look, Jaehwan. We all make mistakes!” Jaehwan snickers as he jots down another note in his book.

“And what about you, Prince Seongwoo?” he asks. “Are you a goody-two-shoes like Prince Minhyun? You peg me as a wilder type. Free-spirited.”

Seongwoo stretches his hand to the ceiling. “I’ve had my fair share of exploits. Skipping classes to play with the sprites. Stealing tarts from the kitchen. I mostly snuck out of the castle to meet with magic users close to my age. I never really learned the skill, but I watched them practice.

“As for romances, I’d consider myself moderately experienced. Love, many found and lost. I’d never tell them I was a prince, but for what it was worth I didn’t need to.”

“What’s that mean?” Jaehwan asks.

“I was too distanced from them, physically and mentally,” Seongwoo says. “My mind was always somewhere else. I never paid enough attention. They’d apologize for needing to break things off, but I could understand. What good is loving a prince if he’s never there to reciprocate? Despicable.”

“Seongwoo,” Daniel whispers. Minhyun lays a hand on the other prince’s shoulder, which he pats once before shrugging off.

“Never mind me,” Seongwoo says. He leans back, folding his arms in his lap. “I’m drowsy from reminiscing about the past. If you could, wake me in another hour.”

Jaehwan and Minhyun look doubtfully at one another, and Daniel lets his gaze linger on Seongwoo a second longer than he should. Minhyun shakes his head, sighing quietly. Seongwoo has removed himself from the conversation, and there’s nothing else to do. Minhyun and Jaehwan talk for a while longer, more hushed, as Daniel stays focused on driving. Occasionally, he’ll look in Seongwoo’s direction and check if he’s still sleeping.

Soon enough, Jaehwan and Minhyun’s voices die down. Daniel checks the rearview mirror and grins. Jaehwan is asleep, with his notebook spread open on his chest; Minhyun is leaning on Jaehwan’s side, his hand stuck in a can of Pringles.

“Aw, they fell asleep together. Cute. Jaehwan has crumbs on his face, heh. He’s so dirty.” Daniel checks the sideview mirror to his right and notices Seongwoo staring at him, eyes half-lidded. “Oh, sorry, Prince Seongwoo. Did I wake you?”

Seongwoo shifts in his seat. “No, the sun was in my eyes.” He rubs his eyes and smiles. “Your murmuring was merely a morning call.”

“You’re funny,” Daniel laughs. Seongwoo shrugs as he takes a swig of water from Daniel’s bottle. “Hey, Prince Seongwoo?”

“Hm?”

“How come Prince Minhyun doesn’t call you ‘prince’?”

“That’s simply because he’s my longtime friend. Similar to you and Jaehwan.” Seongwoo feeds Daniel a cookie, and Daniel hums. “I’m sure you call Jaehwan something other than what he is normally used to, as a friendly gesture.”

“Sometimes, I alternate between dumpling and asshole, depending on who’s asking,” Daniel proclaims, and Seongwoo chuckles. “Does that mean I can call you by your name, too? Am I a good enough friend yet?”

Seongwoo, amused, says, “You may try.”

“Okay.” Daniel takes a deep breath. “Prince Seongwoo. Ong Seongwoo. Seongwoo. Seongwoo hyung. Oh, that last part is because you’re older, Seongwoo hyung.” He chances a look at the prince, who’s holding in a laugh. “What? What is it?”

Waving a hand, Seongwoo grin starts to show as he says, “It’s nothing. I like it, is all.”

Daniel accepts another cookie. “Seongwoo hyung,” he calls.

Seongwoo looks up. “Yes?”

“Nothing.” Daniel hums. “I like it, too.” Seongwoo’s response is another muted laugh, ears going red as he munches on a cracker.

The group makes it to the hotel by evening. They have dinner at a Japanese restaurant nearby, one of those hibachi places that have the grill right at the table. Minhyun and Seongwoo have gone to barbeque, but this restaurant has the chef cooking and grilling for them. Apparently, as royalty, they’re more used to that. Minhyun is much more in his element, telling the chef all his picky habits, both amusing and inconveniencing him. Jaehwan eats off everyone else’s plates, and Daniel just eats what Seongwoo gives him.

Back at the hotel there are two beds, one couch, and one bathroom. With a fair game of rock-paper-scissors, Minhyun and Seongwoo get the beds, Jaehwan gets the couch, and Daniel gets the floor. Defeated, Daniel stares at his offending hand (damn it, he _knew_ he should’ve picked rock) and grumbles, “My back is gonna kill me.”

When it gets to actually turning in for the night, Daniel preparing to set the blankets onto the floor, Seongwoo peers over the edge of the bed and suggests, “We can share, Daniel. I don’t mind.”

“Really?” Daniel frowns. “I have a lot of bad sleeping habits. I didn’t bring my mouthguard so I’ll be grinding my teeth. I kick my arms and legs out. And I snore.” He asks, “Are you sure?”

Seongwoo nods, pulling back the blanket. “I’m sure. Hurry before I change my mind and exile you to the ground.”

Jaehwan, then, asks Minhyun if he’s willing to give him a sixty-forty compromise, to which Minhyun replies flatly, “I prefer a mattress to myself than a unloving couch. I’ll pass.” Jaehwan, indignant, throws a pillow at him.

Surprisingly, Daniel gets a good night’s rest. He puts a pillow between him and Seongwoo while they share a blanket, but that inevitably gets kicked away some time during the night. He gets wrapped around Seongwoo, the prince holding him close, Daniel’s very unattractive drool stuck on his shoulder. Seongwoo, luckily, is out cold and doesn’t notice nor care. He’s cozy.

In the morning, Daniel has to maneuver very carefully to avoid kneeing Seongwoo’s crotch. He untangles himself from Seongwoo’s arms, tiptoeing out of bed as he gets ready for work. The last few weeks he’s found that Minhyun is a light sleeper, so even the slightest noise makes him rouse and get cranky. Daniel has his outfit picked out already, so all he has to do is slip it on without tripping into a lamp.

Before Daniel sets off, he gives everyone a soft pat as a silent goodbye. Jaehwan snores nasally in response, and Minhyun turns over, muttering something about “the dragon’s nest” and “butterscotch scones.” When Daniel goes to Seongwoo, the prince starts to awaken, squinting his eyes at Daniel.

“Sorry, hyung. Go back to sleep. I’m about to go.”

Seongwoo nods, mindless. “Have fun at your meeting,” he murmurs. “Don’t fret.”

Daniel grins. “I’ll try my best.” He pats Seongwoo’s head and tucks the blanket to his chin. All of a sudden, Seongwoo plants a chaste kiss to Daniel’s hand as his fingers brush past his face. He doesn’t seem to notice he’s done it, because he goes back to snoozing, features relaxed, unaware of Daniel’s alarm.

Daniel takes Seongwoo’s advice and tries his best to calm his racing heart, hand pressed to his chest and breaths deep. When it’s still hammering in his chest an hour later, he blames it on overly caffeinated coffee and pre-meeting jitters.

——

Daniel pokes his head in the bathroom, where Seongwoo is washing his face with foam cleanser. The prince has found a fascination with facial care, enjoying animal-print face masks and BB cream. He has on a floral headband holding back his hair, and Daniel touches it lightly and comments, “Cute.” Seongwoo smiles.

“What’s the matter, Daniel? Is that all you came to tell me? Only a compliment?”

“Ah, I have something to ask!” Daniel clears his throat, hands clasped behind him. “Does your world have fireworks?”

“Fireworks,” Seongwoo repeats, humming. “We have catapults that shoot balls of fire, mostly as warfare. Is that what fireworks are?”

Daniel gulps. “Um, I’ll rephrase. Does your world have light shows? Like, explosions of light in the sky for celebrations.”

“Hm... I don’t think so. There may be some light magic in that genre of creation, but I’ve never experienced that.”

Grinning, Daniel exclaims, “Get your jacket, Seongwoo hyung, ‘cause we’re seeing some fireworks tonight!”

After Seongwoo washes his face, he grabs one of Daniel’s sweaters and follows the other man outside. From the looks of it, they’re heading into the direction of the park. Daniel walks with a skip in his step, and Seongwoo is sure he’ll trip over a crack on the ground at the rate he’s going. In fact, Daniel stumbles twice, but Seongwoo catches him before he can hit the pavement. Seongwoo scolds him for his carelessness, though Daniel still looks mighty chipper.

They enter into the open area of the park, where dozens of people are already gathered on the grass. There are small groups, families and friends, spread out all over. Daniel leads them until he finds a spot by the trees, where a clear view of the sky is seen overhead.

“Right here should be good,” he says. He looks around, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “Ah, maybe I should’ve brought a mat. The grass is a little damp. It’ll get uncomfortable, I think. Maybe we should go over there...”

“Daniel, I can’t tell if you’re speaking to me or yourself,” remarks Seongwoo, amused.

“A little bit of both,” Daniel chuckles. He drops onto the ground, eagerly patting the space next to him. “Here. Sit here, hyung.”

Seongwoo sits, folding his legs under him, and asks, “Why have we come here? Is there an event occurring?”

“Sort of. I guess you could call it that.” Daniel checks the time on his phone and smiles. “It’ll start in a few minutes, so get ready.”

“What is it exactly am I getting ready for? Usually when I hear that phrase I’m about to enter a conference or spar one of my knights. Not the most fun on my part.”

Daniel laughs and shakes his head, hitting Seongwoo’s knee. “Hyung, not like that. It’s a fireworks show. You’ve never seen them before.” He looks to the sky again. “I wanted to leave you with a cool memory of this world before you go.”

“What about Minhyun?” Seongwoo asks. “You must’ve left him behind for a good reason.”

“I...” Daniel lowers his head, his thumbs twiddling in his lap. “I wanted you to keep this memory with just you and me.”

A noticeable moment passes before Seongwoo lets out a quiet, “Oh.” The two don’t say another word until there’s the telltale sound of fireworks whizzing through the air.

“Seongwoo hyung! It’s starting now!” Daniel exclaims, pointing to the sky and shaking Seongwoo’s shoulder. “Look up! Look!”

And there they are. The fireworks — blues, reds, whites, and golds, exploding all around. It brings Daniel back to the time of his youth, when he’d visit festivals with his family, a kid with too much time and energy and aspirations. He’d have his hands sticky with powdered sugar from funnel cakes, mouth tingling from overly sweet lemonade. The fireworks would go off high above him, sprinklings of colorful debris rocketing to the ground, burning hot. Every _boom_ , every _crackle_ , no matter how similar would always be different to another, like snowflakes with size and temperature increased billion-fold.

Watching fireworks has always made Daniel feel like he’s witnessing magic. It’s not much he can offer for Seongwoo, who must’ve seen all kinds of magic in his world, but Daniel wants to share it anyway. For the experience.

“Spectacular,” Seongwoo marvels. “This— This is nothing like I’ve ever seen. Wow.”

Daniel glances at the prince, heartbeat loud in his ears, every explosion casting a glow on Seongwoo’s ecstatic grin. “Breathtaking,” he whispers, too quiet for Seongwoo to hear, too loud for him to admit. “You’re beautiful.”

But Daniel needs to be grounded. Seongwoo is even farther in the sky for him to reach than Sungwoon was. He doesn’t want to go through heartbreak again, not like this. Not when Seongwoo is a prince. Not when Seongwoo is worth more than every relationship Daniel has ever been in. Not when Seongwoo has obligations to a kingdom Daniel is starting to hope isn’t real.

He’ll lose Seongwoo regardless, and that’s something Daniel has to come to terms with.

Fireworks never last for more than five minutes — Daniel counts them lucky to have four. Seongwoo is amazed, clapping after every burst, in awe at the sparks’ shine. Daniel is more than happy to join him, but he finds himself watching Seongwoo more than the sky.

At this moment, Daniel lets Seongwoo be his sky. He has a constellation on his cheek, stars in his eyes, and fireworks bursting from his smile. Daniel has never been great at metaphors, but he thinks he could try to write poems for Seongwoo, if he tried.

He won’t try.

“Are you muttering to yourself again?” Seongwoo peers towards Daniel as they’re walking back to the apartment. “It’s a habit, not necessarily bad, but I would like you to have conversations with me while I’m still around.”

Daniel stuffs his hands in his pockets. “You’re right. Sorry, hyung.” He puts on a smile. “Did you like the fireworks?”

“Yes, I did. I wasn’t expecting anything like that. I’ll treasure the memory.” Seongwoo’s grin softens as he exhales loudly. “Tomorrow, we’re going back. Minhyun and I. And then, next week, I’ll be crowned king.”

Having the statement said to him makes the reality hit Daniel. He’s known, he’s prepared, but it still startles him when Seongwoo announces it out loud.

“W-Will you be leaving in the morning?”

Seongwoo tilts his head, contemplating. “Midday, most likely. Minhyun believes the connection lasts between dawn to dusk. I’m not sure how it works, but I trust him.”

“Me and Jaehwan will send you off,” Daniel promises. “Just thinking about it makes me emotional. I hope we don’t cry. Jaehwan’s an ugly crier.” He laughs as he pictures it. Jaehwan would hold onto a box of tissues, wave them in the air as he tried to throw them at the princes. Heh.

They keep walking, a quiet lull between them.

“Daniel,” Seongwoo calls suddenly.

“Yeah?”

Seongwoo pauses. “Do you— Do you ever miss Sungwoon?”

Daniel stops walking, taken aback, and blurts, “Where’s this coming from?” Seongwoo shrugs. Daniel coughs into his fist. “Uh, yeah. There are times, every so often.”

“I see.”

Daniel continues, because he feels like it needs clarification, “He was my boyfriend before he was my friend. I think that was my problem. When I miss him now, I miss him as a friend. I didn’t really have a chance to figure out if we could’ve just... stayed friends.”

Seongwoo hums. He asks, then, “Had you remained amiable, would you ever have gotten back together? Would you have tried?”

Again, Seongwoo is hitting Daniel with loaded questions. Daniel thinks about it.

“I don’t think so,” he proclaims, completely honest. “I have this theory. After a while together, I think Sungwoon was able to paint a future without me in it. It hurt, but...” He nods to himself. “I think I’m okay. We weren’t meant to be, but I understand.”

“You don’t want to be hurt,” Seongwoo reasons.

Daniel’s steps come to a halt, as do Seongwoo’s. “I don’t like it,” he begins, “when the people I love leave me.”

Whether Seongwoo’s prolonged silence is good or bad, Daniel doesn’t know. They continue on their way to the apartment, and Seongwoo doesn’t bring up Sungwoon again.

By the time they return, Jaehwan and Minhyun are asleep. Seongwoo walks with Daniel to his bedroom door.

“Thank you for showing me fireworks,” he says.

Daniel nods, biting his lip. “Yeah. It was no big deal. As long as you had fun and enjoyed it.”

“I—” Seongwoo stops short. “Yes. Thank you.” He smiles. “And goodnight.”

“Night, hyung.”

The door opens and closes, and Daniel is left standing with his head pressed against it, sighing heavily. He can hear when Seongwoo walks away, several seconds later, socked steps light.

It hurts. The thought of Seongwoo returning to his world, Daniel unable to ever see him again.

Heartbreak. It hurts. Daniel wants Seongwoo to love him _so badly_. The selfishness is going to eat him up inside, an evil emotion he shouldn’t let overtake him.

And yet, he’s fallen for a prince.

Daniel stares out the window, watching as the barely full moon taunts his budding affections for Seongwoo, a man leaving tomorrow. A prince he can’t, won’t have.

——

The atmosphere about the apartment gets noticeably tense following that night.

Daniel rolls out of bed, gets dressed, and goes to the kitchen. The princes are already awake, eating bowls of cereal. They stop conversing when Daniel comes in. Seongwoo stares down at his spoon, not meeting Daniel’s gaze, while Minhyun greets him. Daniel brews his coffee, taking out his mug and the creamer.

At first glance, it’s a regular morning. Minhyun tells Daniel about a drama he’d found yesterday and how he binged the whole series. Jaehwan wakes up shortly after, stumbling groggily, and complains about a track he was producing last night that crashed halfway through editing. Minhyun, ever curious, asks what the song was about, what kind of lyrics it had, and Seongwoo guesses it was something romantic and sappy.

“This is mortifying for me to admit,” Jaehwan says, groaning, “but it was a farewell song. I was writing it for you two.”

“How sweet,” Daniel laughs. Minhyun and Seongwoo look genuinely touched.

Jaehwan shudders. “Don’t mention it. My reputation as a cold, heartless singer-songwriter is on the line.” He rubs his nose and grumbles about how he’ll sing it for them later. “Okay, so, we’re taking you to your ninja hideout later, but I was thinking of going around the city for a bit.”

“I favor that idea,” Minhyun says. Seongwoo nods, smile tight. “Should we head out, then? We were hoping to return home before sundown.”

“Sounds good. Let me put on some pants first.”

Daniel wrinkles his nose. “Jaehwan, gross.” Jaehwan simultaneously blows a kiss and gives him the finger.  

The four of them take Daniel’s car to the city, finding street parking and setting off on foot. Mostly, they spend the time window-shopping. Seongwoo and Minhyun assure them that spending money on souvenirs won’t make them feel any better leaving, so they have fun browsing shop after shop, trying on clothes and accessories. There are gift shops, too, with cheesy t-shirts and snowglobes, beer openers and bumper stickers, all of which the princes find riveting. Daniel is courteous to the employees, who have to put up with them, who blush regardless of gender at the princes’ charms.

Afterwards, they eat from a street tent. Seongwoo and Minhyun have found a liking to spicy rice cakes, and they have their fill before they start heading towards the manhole.

Minhyun takes a bathroom break while the other three wait outside. Jaehwan eyes the manhole warily, sitting on the curb, like a mutated amphibian is going to pop out of it and teach him karate. Daniel and Seongwoo stand, backs against the building, staring at the street. Cars don’t enter because of the cones at either end, which Daniel is thankful for. He’d rather not have to block traffic and potentially have the police called on them.

Subtly, Seongwoo stretches out his hand and takes a hold of Daniel’s. “This is for you.”

Daniel inspects the object in his hand. A porcelain dove. The size is no bigger than Daniel’s palm. It’s smooth to the touch, cold against Daniel’s fingertips. It looks like something he’d place on the corner of his desk, guarding his pens and pencils. The longer Daniel looks at it, the more melancholy he becomes.

“It represents our friendship, Kang Daniel. Without your help, I’d be out on the streets searching for the nearest dwarves’ cottage to house me. You—” Seongwoo pauses. “You are a man as worthy as my most trusted knight.”

Daniel rubs his thumb along the dove’s beak. “Thank you, Seongwoo hyung.”

A sad smile crosses Seongwoo’s face. “Prince Seongwoo,” he corrects quietly. Daniel doesn’t respond to that.

“Hey, you didn’t get me anything!” Jaehwan yells, turning towards them. “All due respect, Prince Seongwoo, but I want a parting gift, too. I could totally forget you if I’m not constantly reminded by a cheap trinket from Hallmark.”

Seongwoo laughs. “Sorry, friend. Maybe next time.”

“No, no, no. It’s too late for that,” huffs Jaehwan. “The moment’s over. I hate you now so you should leave.”

“I mustn’t abandon Minhyun,” Seongwoo says, though the tone of his voice makes it sound teasing, like he would if he could. “He’d hold it against me for ages. I’d have to listen to—”

A loud, muffled noise cuts Seongwoo off. The sound comes from the manhole, which appears now to be moving, the cover shifting. The three stare openly as it begins to open. Jaehwan scrambles up and hides behind Daniel while Seongwoo stands rooted to his spot.

The manhole gets uncovered completely and out comes a boy, cloaked in a shimmery cape, leather boots and gloves. He climbs onto the street and brushes off his shoulders, which are covered with glitter.

“D-Daehwi!” exclaims Seongwoo, eyes blown wide, taking a step closer.

Daniel stays cautious, watching the exchange carefully, while Jaehwan is muttering “holy shit holy shit it was real holy shit” under his breath.

The boy ruffles his hair, glitter falling from the roots. “Oh? Good eve, Prince Seongwoo!” he exclaims, bright and cheerful. “How have you been? Living well, I presume.”

Seongwoo’s hands grapple the air, trying to find a sense of clarity, clearly flustered. “T-That—” His eyes dart to Jaehwan and Daniel, who are undoubtedly confused. “What brings you here? I, well, never expected...”

“Here for a visit,” Daehwi giggles. “And you? I thought you were planning on—”

Hastily, Seongwoo runs straight to Daehwi and slaps a hand over his mouth. Daehwi sputters, words stifled.

“Seongwoo hyung, what— what’s going on?” Daniel asks.

Seongwoo snaps his head to him and bites his lip. Daehwi wrenches away from his grasp, grimacing. Then, another voice comes into play and Seongwoo has gone deathly pale.

“ _You!_ ” shouts Minhyun, accusatory finger pointed at Daehwi, who is the picture of innocence. “You’re the witch! The one who tricked the prince!”

Daehwi looks stricken at the accusation. “Pardon me? How could you think that?” He tugs on Seongwoo’s arm. “Prince Seongwoo, tell them. Tell them the truth.”

“I—” Seongwoo shakes Daehwi off, expression guarded. “I cannot.” Daehwi’s jaw drops.

“You’ll pay immensely for your crimes against the Ong Kingdom,” continues Minhyun, fuming, stomping towards the witch. “When we return to our world, you will surely rot in prison.”

“Rot!?” Daehwi bawks, in utter disbelief. He puts his hands on his hips, tapping his foot impatiently. “I will not stand for this slander! Prince Seongwoo, I am sorry. I truly am, but I have to right my name, my profession. I will tell the truth.”

“Daehwi, please—”

Daehwi stalks up to Minhyun, expression serious. “It was not of malice or ignorance that I sent the prince here.”

Minhyun doesn’t waver. “Whatever do you mean?”

Taking a glance at Seongwoo, who’s wringing his hands anxiously, Daehwi confesses to the other prince, “He came to me and _asked_ to be sent away. Far, far away, where no one would be able to find him. As an order from a prince and a friend, I only saw one option.” He squares his shoulders. “I followed the order.”

“You... What?” Minhyun turns to Seongwoo. “How— how could you? You were preparing to be ordinated. You left behind your kingdom. You—” Minhyun’s sentence trails off as he’s struck with the realization. “You ran away.”

And, as that proclamation gets revealed for them all to hear, Seongwoo bolts. He runs across the street, disappearing out of sight, a nearly invisible green light following his figure. The rest of them are too shocked at Daehwi’s confession to chase after him. Minhyun is the most shaken, petrified, as the others gather around him.

“He won’t get very far,” Daehwi assures.

“What?” Daniel says. “Why?” His fingers are tingling. He wants to run, to find Seongwoo, to tell him everything will be okay.

Leisurely, Daehwi starts to walk in the direction Seongwoo had headed in, the others automatically following. Jaehwan leads Minhyun along by guiding him with a hand on his back, surprisingly gentle. After a quick round of introductions, Daehwi explains himself.

“I’d had just enough time to put a spell on Prince Seongwoo, before he’d run off,” Daehwi declares. “We should make haste, though. He’ll cause a nuisance if passerby presume he’s dead.”

Daniel blinks. “Wait, did you say dead?”

“I heard the witch boy say dead,” quips Jaehwan.

“Drowsiness is the spell I cast on him,” Daehwi clarifies. “More complicated, of course, but that is the common name. He’ll need to find somewhere to rest soon. I can follow my magic and it should lead us right to him.”

Daniel sighs, relieved.

“Your magic works in this land?” Minhyun asks, too blandly to be considered interested. He’s still shocked, but that’s to be expected.

“I’m a skilled witch. My power transcends worlds, Prince Minhyun.” Daehwi grins. “I suppose that is why Prince Seongwoo came to me for his request. He must’ve known I would never turn him down.”

With one look at Minhyun, shoulders slumped and eyes downcast, Daniel clears his throat and addresses Daehwi.

“Why would Prince Seongwoo run away? Not right now, but before. From his kingdom.”

Daehwi hums. “Frankly, I haven’t a clue. At the time, I hadn’t asked many questions,” he says. “I trusted the prince’s decision.”

“He went _missing_ ,” Minhyun huffs, the fire back in his gaze. “The kingdoms were in an uproar! There could’ve been bloodshed had not your trail been tracked and discovered before I’d come here.”

“You blame me for our friend’s choice, yet neither of us knows why he’s done it.” Daehwi raises an eyebrow at Minhyun. “I believe we are equally at fault, Prince Minhyun, for we could not see the troubles he’d faced in his castle.”

“How— How could I have known,” sneers Minhyun, relenting.

Wanting to mediate the situation, Daniel tries, “Seongwoo hyung—” He coughs. “Uh, Prince Seongwoo must’ve wanted to have some freedom. To experience it before he became king. When he’s king, he’ll never have the chance to find himself, to be his own person — selfish, overdramatic, emotional, free. He won’t be... Seongwoo.”

Daehwi stares at Daniel. “Hm,” he says curiously.

“Sorry, I-I ramble,” Daniel stutters, embarrassed.

“Even more when he’s nervous,” adds Jaehwan. “I got your back, man.” Daniel glares at him.

Daehwi leads them for a few more minutes until they reach a long bridge, cars zooming across the road and paying no heed to the man slumped against the side. Daniel runs to Seongwoo first, kneeling at his side and checking for a pulse from the prince’s wrist — weak, but steady. A good sign. He tries to shake him awake, but there’s no indication of him coming back to consciousness.

“You said that he’s just asleep, right?” Daniel asks, holding onto Seongwoo’s hand. Cold, sweaty. Not a good sign. “He’ll wake up soon, yeah?”

“Unfortunately, it is... a little more complicated than that.” Daehwi purses his lips. “My spell was, well, stronger than I had intended for. I cannot undo it rightly, for fear of harming the prince. Another method is guaranteed to uplift the curse, but I am unsure whether it is possible at the present circumstances.”

Jaehwan frowns. “Someone translate that. It sounded too important to pretend like I understood it.”

“The witch can’t awaken Seongwoo with his magic,” Minhyun starts, “but there is another way.”

“And what’s that?” Jaehwan inquires.

Daehwi smiles. “Why, it’s certainly true love’s kiss,” he proclaims. “The act is more pure and concentrated than any magic I could ever perform. One kiss of true love and the prince will wake. Simple, yes, but...” He hums. “True love is difficult to come by, isn’t it?”

“True love isn’t real,” Daniel says, on instinct, grip tightening on Seongwoo’s hand. “Not here.”

“Prince Seongwoo came here knowing it must be,” whispers Minhyun. “My friend has always dreamt of such fantasies.”

“Head in the clouds,” Jaehwan muses. It stabs at Daniel’s chest, words familiar. “Oh, now I see. Now it all makes sense.”

“What?” Daniel says, confused. Everyone but him looks like they know what’s going on, and it’s grating his nerves. And then Jaehwan smiles.

“You have to kiss him.”

Shocked, Daniel sputters, “M-Me? That doesn’t... Why me? How could I—” He’s still holding Seongwoo’s hand. He shakes his head. “I couldn’t.”

Jaehwan rolls his eyes and slaps Daniel on the back. “You’ve had actual heart-eyes for each other for weeks now. It’s disgusting.” He nods towards Seongwoo. “Go kiss him so he wakes up and I can punch him in the throat.”

“But—” Daniel turns away. “None of that means _true_ love.”

Minhyun puts his hand on Daniel’s shoulder. “You underestimate yourself, friend. You know more than what you let on. Love is not some test to be taken, some meter to be filled. You know how you feel. You know what’s true.” He bows, princely. “I am positive Seongwoo knows as well.”

“And, might I add,” chirps Daehwi, “it never hurts to try. There’s more to gain than there is to lose, now. Imagine if he awakens!”

The thought brings color to Daniel’s cheeks. Really, though, what does he have to lose? More of his pride and dignity, but that’s gone with the wind.

“Fine. I’ll kiss him, okay?” Daniel takes a deep breath. “I don’t know how or why it would _ever_ —”

“Daniel, I’m about to toss you off this bridge.”

Daniel stops talking. He takes a long look at Seongwoo, sleeping peacefully, and sighs. With one hand reaching to hold Seongwoo’s cheek, Daniel leans in and presses the slightest of kisses onto Seongwoo’s lips. A rush of electricity travels down his spine and out his fingertips, his heart a ball of fire.

They fit so _right_ , not perfectly, but like this is the only moment that matters. Daniel is wondering if it would always feel this way, kissing royalty — kissing _Seongwoo_.

Oh.

When Seongwoo’s eyes flutter open, a quiet exhale passing his lips, Daniel understands now. It’s magic, the most powerful of all, strong enough to break spells and lift curses. Seongwoo smiles at him, warm and soft, and Daniel knows that it’s love.

“Oh, Daniel. Hello.” Seongwoo stretches his limbs and looks around, scratching his neck. “Where are we?”

“A bridge, you ass,” Jaehwan answers. Behind him, Minhyun nods. “Good morning, Sleeping Beauty. How do you wanna hear the good news?”

Seongwoo stands up, extending a hand to Daniel to do the same, and frowns. “News? What news?” He’s met with silence. “Minhyun is here. And... Daehwi. I was asleep. I ran away and, oh, dear, it’s all coming back.”

As Seongwoo’s face goes through a wide range of emotions, from appalled to flushed to excited to bewildered, the four others wait patiently for the prince to get his bearings. He puts his face in his hands, the tips of his ears glowing red. He squeaks, voice cracking, before clearing his throat and schooling his expression. (It’s not a very intimidating face, because he looks like he’ll burst into song soon.)

“You kissed me,” he says, in awe, pinching onto Daniel’s shirt. “You were the one who woke me. You _kissed_ me.”

Daniels nods. “I’m your true love—” He shrugs, looking down, “—or something.”

“I found you,” Seongwoo beams.

Daniel’s heart skips a beat in his chest. “I’ve always been here! And, if anything. _I_ found _you_.” Seongwoo takes his hand, lacing their fingers together. “I guess this is real.”

Seongwoo presses his lips to Daniel’s knuckles, making the younger man blush. “Yeah.”

Jaehwan claps loudly. “Wow, such happy, very exciting, very love.” He clears his throat. “I think we should talk about Prince Seongwoo’s impending fear of running a kingdom. Just throwing it out there. Elephant on the bridge.”

Seongwoo’s grin falters. He pulls Daniel along and follows Daehwi, who’s leading the group again. “I’d rather not,” he says, meek.

Minhyun retorts, “I’d rather you shall!” Jaehwan holds him back by the elbow, and Minhyun calms. “Prince Seongwoo, why? That’s all I ask. Why run from your home? Why run from our world? Why lie about doing so?”

“I... I...” Seongwoo looks to Daniel for help, but Daniel is worried, too, and squeezes the prince’s hand for reassurance. Seongwoo inhales shakily.

“I was scared,” he admits. “Being a prince was all I’d known, and yet. And yet I was destined to become a king, to rule a kingdom, to be the figure thousands of citizens look to as leader. It frightened me: the weight of the world and the feebleness of my shoulders.

“I wanted to see what would happen if I disappeared. It was a baseless, selfish act for which I sought out Daehwi. I told him to take me somewhere to experience another life, to live on my own, independently. I just— I just wanted to know how _I_ could be different. I was taken here, to another world, where I realized... that I couldn’t be anything but a royal.

“To be fair, I put a lot of thought into what I wanted, after I came here. I found that, even though I wanted to diverge, searched for a way out, I had a sense of duty I couldn’t bear abandoning. So I looked past my immaturity and decided to come back. I’ve written letters of apology to bring home, to my family and friends. They all deserve to know, in their own right, why I’d fled.

“I’ve been having trouble figuring out my heart, though. I became infatuated with a simple man. He puts others before himself, tries to downplay his charm, and loves a world where all species exist and coexist, live freely. I wondered if, maybe, I could stay to court him, but this man had a strong love not too long ago. How could I win his heart with it taken by another? And in so little time, with nothing but my name and my face. How could I?”

“Well, that’s certainly not a problem anymore,” Minhyun mutters. Daniel smiles.

Seongwoo laughs. “I’m immensely sorry for all the trouble I caused, friends. I’ll be sure to make up the grievances back in my kingdom. And the other kingdoms, also,” he concludes. “Saying that aloud makes me both proud and ashamed of myself. Expressing emotions is difficult.”

“You did good,” Daniel assures. Seongwoo kisses him on the cheek, unable to help himself, and the younger man giggles.

“Why’d you flee after I arrived?” Daehwi asks.

“I wasn’t ready to announce my mistakes, not when faced with the truth.” Seongwoo shakes his head. “I mean, it’s _humiliating_ , confessing how I am but a coward who ran from the throne. And in front of Jaehwan, no less? It leaves a sour taste in my mouth.”

In contrast to Daniel’s laughter, Jaehwan scoffs, “True love can suck my ass.”

The walk back is a lively journey, filled with laughter and chit-chat. Seongwoo is surprised by how far he’d run before falling asleep. Daehwi says that had he been prepared and in their world, the spell he’d casted would’ve made Seongwoo walk a single step and faint. It’s a frightening power, but Daehwi tells them he’s merely a harmless young witch whose talent proceeds him. Jaehwan, cautious, keeps a meter away from the boy in fear of getting turned into a toad.

Daniel talks with Seongwoo, an open heart to heart. The concept of _true love_ is a scarily serious commitment that Daniel, barely an adult mentally, can handle. He expresses his concerns with the prince, whether he can actually live up to the _true love_ name. They’ll be in different worlds, farther apart than the land and sea. And it hasn’t been long since he’d stopping seeing Sungwoon. Daniel knows he’s in love with Seongwoo; he doesn’t know if he’s fully prepared for the consequences that it brings.

Seongwoo doesn’t want to force him into anything he’s not ready for. He tells him it’s okay to be afraid, to doubt, to worry. Honestly, Seongwoo is experiencing all three simultaneously now but is great at hiding it. Master of illusion, he boasts. He feels the same way, unsure where they should be heading, but he knows— he can feel it in his heart and soul that they’ll be fine. They can take some time to figure things out, slow and steady, no rush.

Daniel likes the sound of that.

When the five arrive at the manhole, it feels like the quest has ended. Daniel looks at his hand connected with Seongwoo’s and wonders when he’ll see him again, after he lets go.

“It appears my work here is done. Well, figuratively speaking, because I hadn’t even gone around to what I’d planned to do.” Daehwi pouts childishly, then beams. “Prince Minhyun, Prince Seongwoo, shall we be off? Whenever you’d like to return, just say the word.”

“Wait, hold up.” Daniel looks between the manhole and Daehwi, who’s blinking cluelessly. “Don’t you have to wait for a full moon or something just as magical?”

Affronted, Daehwi huffs, “ _I_ am just as magical, sir. I can travel through both worlds at whim.” He turns to the princes, bowing. “I can even bring these new friends to our world for Prince Seongwoo’s coronation. How does that sound?”

“Absolutely perfect!” Seongwoo exclaims. He hugs Daniel, fitting snuggly in his arms. “Don’t make me wait long.”

“I won’t,” Daniel promises, placing a light kiss on Seongwoo’s lips. Seongwoo kisses him again, grin wide.

“Stop that. Stop being gross. I didn’t pay to witness this,” Jaehwan barks, shielding his eyes and shaking his fist at them.

Daniel snickers, “Don’t be jealous, dumpling. I won’t abandon you for a prince.” Jaehwan grimaces and retreats to Minhyun.

He bumps the prince’s side and asks, “Can you bring me back a souvenir from the Hwang Empire? I could really use another keychain.”

Minhyun raises an eyebrow. “No, not in a blue moon.”

“Aw, don’t be like that,” whines Jaehwan. “Maybe you can get me one of those love compass thingies? Those look pretty nifty.”

Daehwi pops his head into the conversation, curious. “Love compass?”

“Prince Minhyun used it to track down Prince Seongwoo,” Jaehwan explains, fit with vague hand motions. “Some fancy spell makes it lead to the person who’s in your heart.” Minhyun, making a face, nods.

Extending a hand, Daehwi takes the compass from Minhyun and examines it in his hands, reading the inscriptions. A mischievous smirk crosses his face as he hands it back. “Intriguing,” he remarks, offering no more than that.

“Weirdo,” Jaehwan murmurs. This time, Minhyun agrees without hesitation.

“We must be off, then,” Daehwi announces, lifting the manhole cover. It looks dark and dreary, but after Daehwi wriggles his fingers light flickers to life below, casting a rainbow effect in the air.

“I’ll return for you two in a week’s time for Seongwoo’s coronation,” he continues, smiling at Daniel and Seongwoo.

Jaehwan says, “Hey, before you get going, I have an important question.” He grins. “Is the king-crowning event business-casual, or am I gonna have to go out of my way to rent a tux?”

“For the love of all our kingdoms, clean yourself up and look _decent_ ,” Minhyun declares. Despite his exhaustion with Jaehwan, he hugs him goodbye and plants a kiss on his forehead. “We’ll be anticipating your arrival, Jaehwan.”

Daniel hides a laugh as Jaehwan nods, movement stiff, with his hand held to the spot Minhyun had kissed. Seongwoo is just as amused, while Minhyun’s ears tinge red and Daehwi grins from ear-to-ear.

“Travel safely,” Daniel says. The three descend into the manhole, disappearing into the light, the cover closing with a sweet sound, as if the songbirds have come to send them off as well.

While it seems fitting to feel saddened by the princes’ departure, Daniel is grateful. Grateful to have met Seongwoo, fallen in love, and made another friend along the way, too.

“If this is seriously real,” Jaehwan starts, still dazed, “you’re gonna be a queen, Daniel.”

The undignified snort Daniel lets out is definitely not fit for royalty, but he can’t find it in him to rebuke Jaehwan’s claim. Being a queen doesn’t sound so bad, if he’s by Seongwoo’s side.

——

There are one too many motivational posters in Jisung’s office. Daniel understands that his boss is all for words of encouragement, but the poster of a litter of kittens with the caption _GROWTH: You Must Overcome the Weak to Survive_ is really bumming him out.

Daniel is standing in front of his boss, hands clasped in front of him, and waiting for a reply to his request. He’s gnawing his lip nervously, a habit Seongwoo once chided him for, and reminds himself to put on lip balm later.

“You’re asking for next Monday off?” Jisung folds his hands over his desk, humming pensively. “That’s odd.”

Daniel frowns. “Why?”

“For one thing, you’re always at work. We thought to give you a perfect attendance award! You showed up on a Thursday with the flu, once. Remember that? You almost put the entire company in a billion Won deficit because the numbers were ‘floating on your screen’.”

“In my defense, I was hallucinating very badly. I nearly crashed my car and fell down a hill that day.” Daniel pauses, thinking back. “Wow, I could’ve died.”

“Second thing,” Jisung goes on, clicking his pen. “Monday’s in a week. Asking for a day off that’s so near is very out of left field, Daniel. I don’t know if I can allow it.”

“Jisung hyung,” Daniel whines. “It’s _important_. I’m going somewhere over the weekend, and I don’t think I’ll be able to return for work that quickly. I don’t want to cut my visit too short.”

Jisung’s eyebrows shoot into his hair. “Going somewhere, you say? Kang Daniel, twenty-four-year-old who lives under his blanket, _going somewhere_? Of his own free will?” He leans back, twirling his pen. “Even stranger.”

“I’m... offended.”

Jisung waves a dismissive hand. “Don’t be. It’s nice seeing you out and about. I’ll see what I can do, okay?” He chuckles. “If you’re visiting your new boyfriend, tell him he owes me a meal. An expensive one, if I can pull this off.”

Daniel can’t help but grin. “Sure, hyung. Thanks.” He steps out of the office and is greeted by Woojin and Jihoon, wearing matching ties, squatting by the door. They jump to their feet, smoothing down each other’s shirts, as Daniel starts the walk to his cubicle. The two trail after their co-worker, standing on either side him.

“So, what’s the deal?” leers Woojin.

Jihoon adds, “Where are you going?”

Daniel watches them from the corner of his eyes. “Hello to you, too, eavesdroppers.” He gets to his cubicle soon enough, dropping onto his chair and logging into his computer.

“I tripped and my ear got stuck on the door,” Jihoon proclaims, stone-faced, laying his hands atop the cubicle divider. Woojin does the same. “I’m not an animal, hyung. I have morals.”

“Says the actual devil,” scoffs Daniel. “You’re slowly killing our printer. Don’t even try to defend yourself. You kicked it this morning to clear a paper jam!”

“Kicking is the alternative when punching doesn’t work, obviously. Using brute force ensures results. I don’t regret it and what I do to our printer is unrelated to the matter at hand.”

Daniel stares hard at Jihoon. “Whenever you open your mouth, I can feel the angel on my shoulder weep. You’re hurting him.” Woojin lets out a snicker and yelps when Jihoon steps on his foot.

“That guy you’re visiting,” Jihoon continues, ignoring the punch Woojin manages to land on his shoulder. “Is he the one you brought to work? The pretty one with great hair.” Daniel nods. “Your relationship must be getting pretty serious.”

“What’s the label between you two?” asks Woojin, idly rubbing his foot. “Your BF? Your FWB? You and him, an OTP?”

Daniel chuckles nervously. “Uh, well. He’s...”

What he has with Seongwoo is hard to explain. Seongwoo is everything that Daniel isn’t, everything that Daniel needs. He’s bright, with an occasional dull, and witty, with cheesy jokes here and there. Seongwoo is who Daniel wants to see at the end of a long day, who Daniel wants to see happy and smiling and proud of what he accomplishes in his kingdom. He’s Daniel’s true love, but even that is too much to admit.

“He’s my prince,” Daniel settles for, smiling.

Woojin and Jihoon share a look. “Is that code?” Jihoon asks, deadpan.

Daniel doesn’t acknowledge the question, murmuring to himself, “Oh, well, he’ll be my _king_ soon. A little different, same concept.” He grasps the dove sitting by his monitor and rubs its wing. “He’s got a kingdom. I have a desk job. We’ll make it work.”

“No, it’s kinky. Role-play. I wonder what else goes on in the bedroom.” Woojin pretends to be scandalized, mouth agape. “We need to kinkshame him. Quick, Jihoon, where’s my Bible—”

“Get back to work, assholes.”

**Author's Note:**

> -me @ me: this was supposed to be 2k words max what The Fuck  
> -originally supposed to be an ongnielhwan drabble but i thought abt minhyun for 0.03 seconds & my brain said Not Today  
> -tbh along with enchanted inspiring this i thought of "ongniel is science" as "ongniel is fantasy" & ran with it  
> -i'm still not sure what this even is lmao


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